Yup Sure Did
by BabyJane14
Summary: Their little secret didn't need to be exposed to the outside world. Sue Sylvester and Quinn Fabray could believe whatever they wanted. The last thing they needed was to know the truth in the matter. That was a secret that blonged to Santana Lopez
1. Audition

Manda's Note: So I've decided that my own little world is a pretty place to be. Not that i'm complaining about the beginning of season 2 because I'm not. that fight... Quinn deserved worse than she got... but that's an argument for another time. This... this is because Gabe is my little buddy and throught watching the other night... yea just read. the next note will explain it better. This I believe is going to be updated every wednesday. it's my behind the scenes story 8-) tell me what you think! enjoy!

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"Heard you had a boob job this summer"

Hearing his husky voice made her look up and narrow her eye into a glare. He had to be an ass and bring up the days traumatic events when she was just starting to relax. She hadn't expected the first day of junior year to be a cake walk but she hadn't expected how it'd turned out either. She could have killed someone with no remorse… ok so she could have killed Quinn with no remorse but was the really anything new? The bitch had tried to control her life from the day she'd wondered over with her pristinely ironed yellow dress and perfect sunshine colored hair at the age of seven. The only reason she'd listened to the slut of a blonde anyway was because she'd always found a way to run Santana's life and somewhere along the way the Latina had learned that it was just easier to keep your friends close but your enemies closer. That was the motto she'd for some reason chosen to stick by, regardless of how difficult it had become. She should have known that pushing out the bastard hadn't changed Quinn any.

So she'd stopped with the 'I'm the victim and Puck screwed me over' attitude that she'd had for nine months. that didn't mean she'd changed any more than that. Santana should have seen it coming. she should have known that she'd find a way to get Slyvester to see her and only her. that's the way it'd always been. regardless of how hard anyone else worked if it wasn't Quinn doing it Coach didn't notice. Unless it was something she didn't approve in anyway… something like Santana's expanded chest.

"I heard that you had a vasectomy and you're in depression over the slut."

Smirking back at him watching him put his football gear down at the side of his room she hardly bothered to move any. Instead she leaned her head back against the head board, no pony tail was better than high pony anyway. Had her mother not of been a cheerio back in her days of actually being alive Santana was pretty sure she would have done the unthinkable by defying Sue Sylvester and actually quitting Cheerios. Something no cheerio had ever done in the past unless they were asked to hand in their uniform. In the memory of her late mother she'd learned to suck it up, smile, and take the abuse that Sylvester had always laid down in front of her. That of which included her not so proud moments of stealing Finn Hudson's virginity (of course admitting that it hurt her too wasn't something she was about to admit). But she'd done it to hold onto captain, she'd done a lot to hold onto the title. The title that in just a single afternoon had been ripped away because the blonde whore had decided to play the high and mighty card, one that shouldn't have belonged to her anymore.

Looking back at his face she felt her nerves coil back away. She was back with him for the rest of the day, there wasn't a need to pretend she didn't give a damn about him or anyone else. She could let her guard down. A smile crossed her features rather than her classic smirk because, he hadn't spent the summer whining over the slut, there were some words about the daughter he'd never get to meet but nothing about Fabray. That and he sure as hell hadn't had a vasectomy, even if she'd demanded he'd needed to three weeks and two days ago.

"If you'd had that done at least I'd be able to touch em"

Rolling her eyes she'd expected his comments, she'd been waiting hours to hear just exactly what he'd come up with all day. With a quick under her breath mumble of 'perv' she felt the dip in the bed as he sat down beside her placing the pint of ice cream, chocolate peanut butter, her favorite, on the nightstand beside her before leaning down to kiss her collar bone before placing a kiss on the little thing coiled into a little ball on her chest. That was exactly what made stupid immature high school politics and fights worth it. Being able to be home and let all of her animosities go with her own precious secrets.

"Are you complaining?"

Feeling him remove the seven and a half pound pressure off of her chest her eyes snapped open, she didn't like sharing him, and for once in her life she didn't mean Puck. Even if the little thing in his arms half belonged to him it didn't mean that she couldn't be completely possessive about it. She had to admit, as much as she loved to hold the little thing she loved watching him hold him just as much. There was something different about the seventeen year old boy when he had the pile of blankets in his arms. He wasn't the macho 'score as much as I can' football player. He was Puck… more importantly he was her Puck. the same stupid mohawked kid she'd known since the day she was born. The same Puck who'd held her hand through labor rather than standing across the room horrified.  
"Not at all - - - though I did hear you say mother like it was a bad thing… another part of your cover up act?"

Lying down beside her with the baby sound asleep still on his chest she rolled onto her side to look at them, even after three weeks she wasn't used to the sight. Every time she looked at them it felt more and more surreal. Watching him gently run his hand up and down the little blue onsie clad baby boy, not something she was likely to get used to for awhile either. Her most loved possession and best kept secret, so when she fought with Quinn she'd been able to turn the mommy part of her off, she'd been able to get back to the bitch in charge that she'd put on hold just three weeks ago. It'd felt good to give her a little bit of the animosity that had built up for the nine months she'd watched Quinn bitch, complain, and lie to everyone around her.

"Well for one I still have a reputation to hold up, and for two I'm not his mother I'm his mommy."

A reputation that now included queen of plastic surgery, something she could handle. wasn't any worse than Asian home wrecker and it was definitely better than slut, which she would have without a doubt been labeled had the world known about the infant boy resting on his father's chest. She'd generally brushes aside all labels that were thrown at her but there was something about having a label thrown at her son that rubbed her the wrong way and made her sure that she wanted to hide him from anyone and everyone's knowledge. Jane Puckerman had spend more than her share of months after regional's drilling into Santana's head that yes, he was an accident but no, he wasn't a mistake. She didn't have to worry about anyone guessing the truth by her appearance. believing that she'd go under the knife was easier then thinking that she had a single maternal bone in her body.

"Speaking of Jacob… why did Brittany say she spent the summer in the sewers?"

Oh Brittany… her lovable bubble headed blonde best friend. Santana shook her head and quietly laughed as she reached behind her for the ice cream he'd brought in. Not that anyone would be surprised by Brittany's supposed summer activities of course, but it was still a statement that made everyone stop and scratch their heads. Taking the ice cream spoon out of her mouth she shook her head and bit her lip for a moment. When she'd taught Brittany things she didn't do a very good job teaching her how to lie.

"Um… you missed the car ride to school this morning. I kind of told her that I didn't care if she told everyone that she'd spent the summer in the sewers… she just wasn't to tell anyone about Gabe. Sometimes I forget that britt's nearly incapable of lying for herself."

shaking her head she put another spoon full of ice cream in her mouth as Puck let out the slightest of laughs, enough to make the baby on his chest pop his little eyes open and close slightly mimicking the signature glare that belonged to his mother. lesson one in parenting a child of the stubborn and merciless… never rudely wake baby up from a nap.


	2. BrittneyBrittany

Manda's note: Can't forget Gabe for the week... poor baby's doomed :D

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"Look at that stud… mommy's so hot daddy had to come home and take a cold shower after assembly today. Maybe mommy needs to sing Brittney Spears more often."

With her seven week old infant in one arm and her history book in the other hand Santana lazily studied for the test the following day. Friday sounded nice. After a week of living her childhood years in Brittney Spears mode a break to lounge around with her son was just what she needed. Besides, it gave her time for the bruises on her back to lose a little bit of their purple color. Climbing her way to the top of the pyramid hadn't been so painful the first time… not that she could remember anyway. Most of freshmen year had been a swirl of hookups, parties, revenge, and liquor. This, sitting with a baby studying, this wasn't what she'd expected. Yet as she glanced down at the half sleeping baby who started up on her sucking away on his pacifier she knew that it wasn't the wrong thing. After watching him smile at Puck for the first time earlier in the week she couldn't bring herself to regret her decision.

"Didn't think you'd get that pissed off when Shu decided to pair me up with Quinn."

As he smirked she shot him a look at told him to go to hell as he dropped his towel and started to get dressed. So yea she'd at last second taken it upon herself to switch herself and Quinn's roles around in their toxic number. But of course, Santana liked to be on top. Straddling him in front of the entire school was just her way of marking her territory and proving to everyone that he still belonged to her. leaning her head down she kissed Gabe's nose blocking the older Puckerman out, if he was going to be an ass about her jealousy he could just go back in the bathroom and take a cold shower.

"Do you realize that you baby talked to Artie this week? The way you said blue tooth… that's how you talk to the baby."

Strike two. Yep she'd had a very very long week. Then again, getting up with the baby every three to four hours per night to feed him wasn't exactly easy. Most of the time she did it on auto pilot now, she'd just happened to forget how to shut off that auto pilot before going to glee early Tuesday morning for a impromptu meeting. it was just a good thing for them that Jane didn't mind switching her hours at the hospital to nights and watching her grandson during the day.

"As for your comment to our son… no, no more Brittney. Your… your voice is too good for those crappy vocals. Pick someone who isn't famous for her mental break downs. I'm nothing like Kevi…"

Looking at him she raised her eyebrows. Compliments were few and far between when it came from the old Puck (unless they were a little pervy of course, she got those all the time), she still wasn't used to this whole praising thing. As for his knowledge of Brittany and Kevin… well, that she just wasn't going to ask about. If Puck wanted to read gossip rags with Kurt in his free time that was his business. Besides, other than her lack of sleep she'd had a pretty damn good week.

"Speaking of Brittney… wanna tell me about this sex fantasy you had getting high at the dentist? Do Gabe and I have something to worry about? And speaking of dentists, you don't screw him before you'd even let me touch you did you? Because, that's not fair…"

As Gabe cooed at her facial expressions as her eyes widened , her jaw dropped, she put the history book down, kissed the side of their son's head, placed him into the basinet and walked over to Puck's bed punching his shoulder. Yep, that would leave a mark that he deserved. He had to wonder why he'd ever pushed her in the direction of taking kick boxing classes two years ago after the fateful party the summer before freshmen year.

"What? At least when you decided to play the like a virgin card you picked to imitate someone iconic. Brittney on the other hand? Baby what's next? shaving your head?"

Another smack landed its self smack into his other shoulder as she pushed him back into the bed and for the second time in the straddled his abdomen, his hands slipping to her hips to steady her. Santana's balance was as good as her dance moves, which were severely lacking unless she was meaning to look like there should be a pole around. Hence the reason she was generally paired with Finn for most dance moves. Leave the bad to one side and hope no one looked that way.

"If you really need to know the song was Me Against the Music, you know… white suit… sexy dance moves while you watched from behind the bar."

Leaning down she whispered close to his face, his hands slipping up under her shirt slowly as she leaned down and kissed the pressure points in his neck. She could feel his breathing start to hitch as her hands started to slowly pull down the zipper of the jeans he'd just slipped on.

"and for the record… I was Madonna"

Her low sultry voice and the way her hand was starting to work was beginning to remind him what things had been like all summer long, all year long, ok so it reminded him of the way they'd always been. It was a good thing he was an infant, pretty soon they'd be watching him roll around on the floor or pull himself up on things rather than act like the stupid hormonal teenagers they'd always been. at least, they could start to pretend to be what they'd always been. till the abrupt scream from the basinet made them both freeze in place, shirtless for one and fly down for the other. Throwing her head back she let out a whine before slipping off of him.

"Time for your second cold shower of the day… your son has to eat"

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Sara - Gabe's my buddy, I look forward to writing him every week :D yepp he's goin to be the little kid with the attutide and the mohawk at the age of one 8-) everyones doomed

Kaan - :D hope your still reading and i'm glad it fits what you look for :D


	3. Grilled Cheesus

Manda's note: A few things to say here. A note from thee best friend is to ... when you're reading this (most of it at least) listen to **Chris's version **of **I wanna hold your hand**. and the second thing from me myself issss I believe there's going to be a** chapter to come before **this about the beginning of the week dealing with **'Only the Good Die Young' **but I needed to get this out before I could really focus on that. If you think it'll be overkill let me know and I won't write it. but I had an idea with where to go with it before I wrote this part. Anyways yea, enjoy! and I'm gonna go work on **Mistakes** **That Make You **Because right now that's the story I can't get off my mind. Again as usual send me any requests, thoughts, comments... I'm more than willing to comply with anything.

Oh! side note I thought I'd share because it made me laugh. My nephew, who's 16.. watches Glee with me and about everything else I watch because I'm a pain in the neck but that's beside the point. few days ago he came over to catch up and watch the first three eps and Audition deleted off of my DVR so I showed him the Quinn bitchout and he looks at me and goes 'did Santana have a kid during the summer? makes more since than a sixteen year old going through that' yeaaaa I don't know what I did to him but he thinks on the same wave length as me and I love it. I looked at him and nodded saying, 'yea, his name is Gabe' Ok! i'm shutting up now. get to reading!

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Burt Hmmel was a good father. Puck didn't know much about him but he did know that much. Burt Hummel raised his son alone after his wife's passing. He was a man who was able to look past the differences between himself and his son just to persevere and make the best life possible between himself and his son just for his child. Burt Hummel was the father Noah Puckerman didn't know actually existed, he was the type of father Puck planned to be. The whole heart attack thing had had Puck thinking all week. Thinking about his own losses and his own faiths. his losses to the fact that his own father had turned his back and walked away when Puck was only eight years old, three days after the birth of his daughter, never to come back into their lives again because he, 'didn't want that responsibility' something that angered Puck more now than it had before. Even at seventeen Puck had been through more than his father had in the thirty years he'd been alive before his daughter was born. At seventeen Noah Puckerman had already known more about love, loss, and let downs than his father ever would. It was only the soft gurgling that came from the white lined cradle beside the bed that tore him from his thoughts.

Rolling onto his side in the full sized bed he edged closer to Santana to peak over her shoulder at the eight week old laying on his back playing with his hands completely content. He could still hear Santana's voice in his head two weeks after Beth had been given away. Blunt and straight forward she'd said to him, 'Went for new birth control today and they couldn't put me on anything. Sylvester's shakes have stopped my period for two years now; I didn't think it was possible. I tried to get rid of it – it's way too late to legally do anything about it' she'd been so thrown and chatty. Santana hadn't ever been chatty. He'd never been so relieved for their carelessness as he was when his mother had driven them to Dayton to a small clinic there for a checkup. she'd let him stay in the room, he'd been tight there when the doctor had pointed out that he was a small but healthy baby boy, and, they'd shared the same look that told one another that they were going to be parents. That was the same afternoon he'd picked up more hours at sheets n' things and bought the blue teddy bear rather than the new super Mario game. The eight week old was proof enough that he was changed. Proof enough that he'd never be anything like his own father. The moments splayed out in his mind made him slip out of the bed over Santana to pick Gabriel up out of his bassinet stirring the baby to remember that it was time to eat. Puck wasn't ready to hand him over just yet as he grabbed Gabe's paccy and the duck blanket to wrap around him.

"Hey Bud, how about you hold out and let mama sleep? You and I need to talk."

Holding the tigger pajamas clad ten pound infant he let himself linger on the fact that his son had grown from the four pound ten ounce preemie. He'd been the first one to hold the still gross and muck covered newborn. Something that he hadn't even gotten to do with Beth, a fact that he'd always question. Wrapping the duck blanket around the baby he held the pacifier in his mouth for a moment till Gabe had decided to give up and accept the fact that Puck was going to be a stubborn father and not give into letting him eat. Leaning his head down he kissed the top of his son's head of matted dark curls. Gabe's big honey brown eyes stared back at him with innocence that he was nearly positive he'd never possessed himself. Everything about him was so tiny and so new; everything was something that Puck wanted to watch. Something he couldn't figure out why anyone wouldn't.

"You know Gabe… I've never really myself gotten my own complete family, I remember being your Aunt Li's age when my father left me. I remember what it was like that night, the night he left. Your Aunt was a baby like you, younger than you. He picked me up and said 'well champ, time for you to take care of your ma, your ma and your sister are your responsibility now.' thinking back on that now… I don't get how he could just leave like that. I remember asking your nana what I did wrong. Asking her if I was a good boy if he'd come home. For years I'd hoped that he'd come walking back through the doors."

Standing on the porch he couldn't keep his eyes off the fully alert infant in his arms. Watching as he sucked away on the pacifier content as could be little hands grabbing away toured Puck's face. He still had the memory of the day the door slammed in his own memory bank, the day that his mother had fallen to pieces with her newborn daughter in her arms. That was one of the major events in his life that had made him what he was. The event that made him always search for acceptance that he seemed to always try to find in the wrong places. It was the type of thing that he'd make sure Gabe never went through. He'd never need to look in all the wrong places that got him into trouble that made him disappoint his mother.

"You'll never have to worry about any of that. I'm never going to leave you. I don't care about anything else; the only thing that matters first and foremost is you Gabe. I just need to you know bud; I will never ever turn my back on you like my old man did on me. I'm not a dead beat, I'm your father. as strange as that still feels to say that's me, I'm your daddy and you will one day know that you can come to me for anything, and, one day when you're big enough I'll teach you how to play football… and baseball. We'll go to the park and play catch. I'll do you one even better than that, soon as you know how to sit up you're in full control of your own x-box remote. You'll love Super Mario, the sounds and the lights. Before you know it we'll be killing zombies together."

To think that one thing so little could bring the badass he was to a calm and controlled state was almost hard to believe. He'd changed and it was visible, his comments to random girls had been almost silenced and his speak outs in glee were even less. the week had been his first solo in a month. Only thing he'd really been singing were lullabies to put Gabe to bed. The only thing it did do was make him regret not being able to show the baby off to everyone around him. Regardless if he and Santana had made the pact to keep everything about the baby silent, for their images, sometimes he wondered if they were even being fair to Gabe, keeping him coped up day after day unless they drove hours away to another town to protect not only themselves but him also. When he thought about it though it made sense he guessed. He'd be the laughing stock of McKinley if they knew he'd knocked up two girls and Puckasurus just didn't roll that way. She, she would have lost every bit of cheer in a heartbeat only to have to hand the whole thing over to Quinn. Losing Captain and being mocked for her boobs on a daily basis by Sylvester was enough, Puck wasn't about to put her though anymore.

"You don't ever have to worry about it being just you and I though Bud. Want to know why? Because you have a family, a real family who loves you more than any little boy has ever been loved I bet, besides, you're a Puckerman. You'll always have someone around that loves you. You have Nana Jane, bet she'll even wash your hair for you when you ask. Don't worry bud, soon as you have more hair we'll get it cut in a mohawk too. Even if nana shakes her head at it she knows it's one of the things that make us Puckerman's. You have your Aunt Li, the moment mommy could feel you kick all Aunt Li wanted to do was to sit there and feel mommy's stomach. She promised you then that she'd share her toys with you. Not too sure how much you'll want to play with baby dolls and Barbie dolls but the shrimp did make a promise. You can sit there and tear the heads off if you want, I'll remind her that she was the one that said it. Then… there's your mommy. She's never loved anything or anyone as much as she loves you… maybe Aunt Brittany but that's beside the point. I promise the reason she loves you is not because of the new assets you've given her either, even if I like that one kid. I hope you have half of her strength Gabe. If you have half of that you're set for a very long time. But you're not going to need that Gabe. You're not going to because you'll always have us just a step behind you. Always, no matter what happens."

The day that Quinn had told him she was pregnant he'd wanted to stand up and be there for her and the baby, he'd wanted to 'do the right thing' the moment he'd found out that Quinn was pregnant he hadn't known what the right thing was. It wasn't till Santana's scared chattering that he'd learned the real means of the word, how she'd sat there and pushed him away because 'it was her fault' and 'she should have been more careful and less stupid' she'd attempted to shoulder all of the responsibility. All the responsibility that she'd tried everything to keep to herself till the day he'd kicked. Late June sitting out in the backyard he'd watched her jump out of her skin and slip a hand to her bare still mostly flat stomach. The right thing had been the words he'd meant and gotten a glare for as she'd pulled his hand over the spot on her stomach. The right thing had been being overly concerned when she hadn't threatened to kill him even once during labor (he'd expected she'd strangle him herself). The right thing was standing on the porch looking down at the wide awake infant in his arms and knowing that he'd never turn into his own father.

"Next weekend we start our marathon bud, Puckerman tradition. Grandpop… I guess… your Great Grandpop that would be… he used to watch all the real old 1940's Halloween movies with me every weekend before Halloween. He used to tell me that it was a tradition that one day I needed to pass onto my own son. He watched every weekend around Halloween till I was twelve and he died from a heart attack. I'll tell you more stories about him as you get older Bud. The Mummy… Frankenstein… they're all black and white Gabe but, their classics. you'll learn to love them. Besides, regardless of what mommy says there better than her crap. Don't worry, I won't let mommy torture you with Chucky and Pet Cemetery."

Then again she'd hardly let Britt watch them without covering her eyes for her. It was all sides of Santana that not to many people ever got to see. The traditions on the other hand, things passed down from his grandfather only. bout the only thing his own father had given him was his need for someone to hold onto even if it was just a night. Saying that Puck had daddy issues would have been right on the money. It would also be right to say that he'd never allow his own flesh and blood to have the same perspective that he did.

"Your mama… she means well. She just comes up short sometimes."

Changing the tone in his voice to a more smart assed one he still felt the need to cover for his emotions when anyone was near and it didn't matter if the one behind the door was the one he'd always shown his emotion to. besides, after what she'd done earlier in the night he deserved some sort of upper hand. He laughed to himself hearing her grown as she pushed open the screen door to walk out on the porch with her two boys. Not that Puck was willing to admit out loud to anyone other than her, their son, or his mother but, he was absolutely taken with her. How could he not have been? Through everything she'd for some reason stayed, she'd made him want to be the guy he'd never thought he'd be.

"You're an ass"

She mumbled sitting down next to him, still warm from sleep as she leaned against his arm, eyes threatening still to shut. She'd been good about it though, getting up to feed their son. He had to laugh at her, quietly of course, no need to piss her off quite so early in the morning. Taking the pacifier out of Gabe's mouth he passed the baby over to her and put the baby blanket over her shoulder, three am rituals were something they'd both grown accustom to. He never failed them, like their own personal alarm clock.

"That's what you get for falling asleep on me halfway through, "

Yea, there wasn't any denying that they were still the same old Santana and Puck… didn't matter if the two month old baby in her arms was there it hadn't changed all that much. It was just a good thing he was to little yet to comprehend anything that really came out of either one of their mouths. He leaned over putting his head in the crook of her neck, after placing a kiss to her collar bone, a move that had she not had a child attached to her might have lead to more. He knew better than to expect any more than her simple smirk though.

"First, you're the one that knocked me up making me always tired after dealing with your little monster and second your fingers weren't fast enough… maybe you're losing your touch Puckerman."

If being smart mouthed to one another wasn't a well known past time either one of them would have likely gotten angry for the exchanged banter, but, he knew she was kidding. That was one of the things that made raising a baby with her so different than it would have been with Quinn. Made it so much different knowing that they could still be themselves and he didn't have to watch his mouth or his actions with her. It was one of the reasons he… loved her.

"Mom won't be home for two and a half more hours. We could always put the kid to sleep in the shrimp's room and go try it again."

Not even taking time to respond to his pointless sexual suggestions she rolled her eyes and looked down at their son in her arms. Nope, it'd be another night that Puck yet again got nothing. A new every few nights trend that surprisingly enough he was just fine with, so long as he got to watch her with Gabe he was just fine with her not paying him any favors.

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Kaan - Hope you enjoy this chapter too! Lol I totally call my best friend at the end of each week and say to her 'ok, where was Gabe this week? what did Nana Jane do with him?' makes it fun.


	4. Duets part 1

**Manda's Note**: This is ONLY the first part of this weeks chapter. There are two parts... at least. I'm already working on the second part! so enjoy it! and remember to **review**!

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It'd started with a cough and a stuffy nose. It'd started with that and it worked its way up to getting progressively worse. Low grade fever, stuffy runny nose, then… that's when the deep hacking cough and the higher fever started. He'd turned into the biggest baby between the few hours of waking up with Santana and Gabe at three and getting up for school at six-thirty. Then, the little one had started with. Hours on end of stuffy inconsolable crying, refusing to nurse, only wanting to just snuggle for hours and never be put in his own crib. He'd never been colicky, from the moment he'd been home he'd had her quiet demeanor, now, at nine weeks old he'd decided to pick to scream his lungs out at random. Though as the coughing started Jane had stepped in and ordered both of the Puckerman boys to the doctors without arguments.

Bronchitis, with a doctor's note in hand Puck was out of school for two weeks with pills, an inhaler, a recommendation to use vix, and a reason to make sure to turn the humidifier on night after night. Not to mention an excuse to whine and pout and almost get his way for the things he wanted and begged for. Bronchitis was only the beginning of it, pneumonia was the second diagnosis. That was where the chest pain and difficulty breathing came from. And that was half of the visit to the pediatrician. Like the seventeen year old his nine week old son had swelling in his throat and almost an exact mirror of the same barking cough that Puck had. Daddy and baby were both sentenced to at least two weeks of antibiotics and constant mothering.

Jane refused to let them both skip, she'd mothered Puck for over seventeen years now without help and she wasn't about to give it up. It was that and the day after Gabriel had been born both Puck and Santana had decided that no one was to find out about him. How would it have looked if they'd both skipped school for an entire week. So she woken Santana up bright and early Monday morning while she paced back and forth with the infant baby knocked out from pain meds in her arms.

"Do you remember when Noah and Finn got in trouble for throwing the fireworks off of the highway and hitting cars? Remember he was put on probation for two years because of it?"

Santana had tried to take her baby from his Nana's arms only to get a head shake and be pointed to her uniform in the closet. Something that made her instantly cross her arms and re run Jane's question in her mind for a second.

"Yea… probation ended on his seventeenth birthday. It's been weeks since then and he hasn't done anything wrong. Why are you bringing…"

The look on Jane's face had Santana who only wanted to go back to bed with her son in arms and crawl up in a ball beside Puck. Sleep was a rare occurrence the weekend past and Santana was exhausted. She hardly felt like putting contacts in, tightening a pony, or listening to anything that was going to come out of Sue or Quinn's mouths. She just wanted to stay with her boys all day, under the covers, even if it meant sniffing vix for more hours then she'd already had to.

"I pulled some strings… had him call Figgins. The word is that he's in juvie, you and Gabe are safe. You can go to school today. I've got them both for a few hours. Go and be yourself for a few hours, text me and check in whenever you want to. Go to Cheerios, go to Glee… be a normal seventeen year old for a little while. The boys are just fine."

Ever muscle in Santana's body wanted to protest and throw a fit that she wasn't leaving the pair. She didn't have any choice in the matter though. What was that quote? Don't bite the hand that feeds you? Yea she wasn't about to piss Jane off in any way. She'd just have to suck it up and go that day… or as much of it as she could of it anyway. All she knew was that she didn't give a damn what anyone had to say, the only place she wanted to be was with Puck and their son. She was likely to go off on anyone who got in her way for the day.

"He's got fresh bottles on the bottom door of the fridge just make sure there a little warmer than usual when you heat them. With all his coughing I figured it might make his throat feel better. He's not eating real well. As for Puck I'll pick him up a slushy at 7/11 before I get home …blue one, I know his favorite. He just took another sleeping pill about two hours ago too."

She wasn't about to add the fact that they were his favorite for the solid fact that they pissed people off the most when he threw them at people. The one flavor he saved to throw at those that weren't exactly high on his list. Walking forward she pressed her lips to Gabe's round cheek nearly willing him with her mind to wake up and start wailing so that she had to take him and quiet him down like she'd been doing all weekend. No such luck, the nine week old in Jane's arms continued on his sleeping, uneven, stuffy breaths. So much for listening to his mother, that was it …he was officially just like Puck.

"If I get suspended today it's not my fault."

If only Jane hadn't put herself on nightshifts the day Gabriel had come home from the hospital, maybe then she would have been able to sneak back in after she left. Then again, Puck with the pain in his chest and his coughing wouldn't have been the best candidate to take care of Gabe on his own anyway. She had no other choice but to leave them and go to whatever hell McKinley would pass her way for the day.

* * *

**Jenna** - Pretty sure its a graduation thing. He's their little secret and Ana doesn't share well.

**Mackenzie** - I owe you the biggest comment but it's not on this one, so I'll wait till I update Mistakes to say anything. Thank you so much for reading and I hope you read and enjoy this chapter too!


	5. Duets Part 2

Manda's note: No, the first sentence is not a typo. Looking at it at first glance looks like it should be. Ok! enough about that. I can't get over the amount of reviews on last chapter, that was unbelieveable and you guys are so sweet, thank you so beyond much for everything. I've re written this chapter about four or five times. but I think I absoultly love how it's come out. A big thank you to **Hillary** for actually inspiring me with where a majority of this went. You might... and I say might because I have quite a few other things that I have to finish before I can even think about it. You might get a part three out of this regarding Santana reflecting on working with Mercedies and WHY she wanted to win that breadstix gift cirtificut. but I only say might because at the moment my mind is stuck on my newest (**What It Isn't**) so I need to get that out and **Changes of the Heart **needs to be polished, **Ice and Ladybugs **is halfway done for the next chapter, need to write the letter for **Forever and a Day**, lastly **Mistakes that Make You **i'm finishing up the next heartbeaking chapter. busy busy busy so i'm gonna shut up now and post this. I'm looking so forward to writing next weeks, not that Gabe's going out but they still have to have him somewhat enjoy it right? besides, Puck/Santana/ and her Magenta costume? ...need i say more? ok so this chapter, **enjoy it**! and there are more notes to my wonderful reviewers at the bottom.

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"Who are you doing today Tink?"

His stuffy voice drifted into the living room and she looked up from where she sat on the floor. She'd relieved Jane half an hour ago when she'd come home to feed Gabe rather than actually going to gym class. Perks of being a cheerio, when she skipped gym no one cared. They didn't dock her A for it. Sylvester would have killed them had they tried. She did her physical educational time. Between being stepped on in Cheerios and sex she deserved to have an A.

"Not really sure, must be someone damn good because I'm not going back to that place today."

That was their standing joke now. Since Mercedes had asked her why she'd rushed into English class on Wednesday with her inform top half unzipped on the side. She'd simply smirked and mentioned one of the new freshmen boys on the football team's name. Mercedes had rolled her eyes buying it as normal Santana behavior. it paid off to have the reputation she had sometimes. it wasn't like any of the football players would have shot down a rumor like being gone down on by Santana, she was one of the hottest girls in the school. Any guy would have been labeled gay if he'd denied a rumor like her getting in their pants.

"So that must mean you went to the juvie center and paid the guard to stand outside the room while I did you on the metal table?"

Glaring at him as he started to laugh and hack she looked down at the baby lying on top of the transformers quilt on the floor for tummy time. It was the first time all week he'd been fine with laying on the floor and not being in someone's arms. Of course, it didn't last five minutes before he started to whine in annoyance. Picking him up off the floor she cradled him to her shoulder and shook her head at Puck.

"Do you really want to get me started about the whole juvie thing?"

Watching him as he threw back his pills and washed them down with a rancid protein shake that Jane had made before leaving for work, the protein shake was one of the only things his throat could handle. She made a face and followed him with her eyes as he lay down on top of the quilt. She sighed again before walking over and sitting on his hips with another sigh. his hands went straight to resting on her thighs, one of the many reasons he'd always loved her cheerios uniform, however with the nine week old wide awake and pulling at his mommy's hair he wasn't about to get very far.

"That bad?"

Santana put her hand down on his chest and rubbed a circle over his lungs leaving him attempting to figure out who she was trying to sooth more, him or her own mind. She always did little things when she needed to relax herself. For years it had been his Mohawk.

"Apparently Britt feels neglected… so… I tried to give her a little bit of closeness… the way things used to be. I didn't realize till the whole thing started that that just doesn't feel the same anymore. I had the overwhelming feeling that I shouldn't have been there the entire time I was there even if your mom did kick me out for a few hours for smothering you both with attention, she just doesn't want him to end up like you."

For the first time in years there was no comment or reaction on how he 'wanted to join in' from the peanut gallery, instead he had no reaction to it. He was so much more focused on getting the baby she had in her arms to mimic his facial expressions. It wasn't that he wasn't paying attention to her words, it was just that he didn't seem to care all that much for the situation.

"Stupid bought the whole bullshit juvie thing, when she knows the truth she still bought the whole thing. She had the nerve to actually complain about Gabriel as I was leaving Monday too."

Big mystery solved. He'd attempted all week to figure out what was wrong with her. She and Brittany never fought, that he could remember her say anything negative or derogatory with reference to Brittany. The whole thing just proved once more that Gabe now came before everything and anyone.

"On top of that she insinuated things all week. It just pushed me over the edge. She's acting like a neglected child. Get this one… so she decided that she wanted a baby. Due to Artie being in a wheel chair she somehow got it in her head that she could put him in a stroller and he could be her baby. I just decided that I'm not asking questions anymore. If she's looking to get hurt, and that's what sleeping with someone who has an actual heart that she can actually traumatize will do then there isn't anything I can do to stop her. Besides, I don't have the time or the patients to be around her like I used to. I'm not giving up on her I just need her to tone down her idiotic toddler tantrums."

Well at least she was getting it all of her chest then, the only thing that broke her from her ranting was the soft and wheezy coos of her son as he interacted with his father. She'd spent over an hour the night before watching Puck sitting on the floor with Gabe in his bouncy seat next to him as he explained exactly how to play Super Mario Brothers and why it was so important.

"You know what mama didn't tell us bud? She didn't tell us why daddy got pictures of her shaking it in her cheerios uniform and making everyone's jaw drop at the things daddy already knows about her body."

He was lucky he was sick, he got away with squeezing his hands on her body the slightest bit without her glaring. Instead though it resulted in her perplexed face, a look he knew all too well.

"We did duets this week and that bitch still one upped me. She knocks me down the pyramid and then she still wins in Glee. How does that work? I work my ass off and still get nothing."

The traces of a pout crossed her face for a brief moment before it was confusion as his hand slipped up her body over her cheerios uniform till his fingers hooked the neckline of it and pulled her down to meet his lips for a brief moment, their poor slightly squished son being left to slight confusion in the middle of them. The no kissing rule had taken effect the moment he'd started to hack a week ago. Yet his lips brushed hers in the most innocent way for a moment before she sat back up and adjusted the baby to sit up with support between them, a soft smile played on her face.

"You get to be the one to sleep in my bed every night"

With his usual smirk she rolled her eyes and looked down at their son still shaking her head.

"I still think he's the better deal in the whole thing."

* * *

Mackenzie- :D once again have been over anxious to respond to you. The fact that he was a preemie added alongside the whole 'Sue Sylvester protein shake thing' I have a hard time seeing her as being very healthy up till the time that she actually knew she was carrying him. I don't know why but after that whole thing I see majority of the cheerios having slight eating disorders lol. those two coupled together I see as keeping Santana's gained wait to a nearly scary minimum for a while, with few stretch marks. My personal biggest hint of them being sweet outside of their cold exteriors (specially with one another) was in Showmance. The kiss when they're by the lockers, her giggle and wave was just so genuine accompanied with the look he gave her and the way he was when he pulled back (ok so I've had that as my computer screen background for like six months or so not gonna lie) hope this chapter held up to the rest of the story too! I soulddd have Mistakes up by the end of the week too!

Julie- This was without a doubt the most difficult chapter for me to explain things from. thinking about it alone gives me a headache lol. next week's gonna be fun though 8-) hated Rocky Horror but Halloween on the other hand, so many places to go with it. hope you liked this chapter and thank you so much for the review!

Hillary – I owe you a huge thank you. I'd written and re written this chapter three times before your review and what you said just made the whole thing click into place so thank you so much for that. I see San as being completely self centered (with reason) there are very few people who get into the side of her that actually cares. it's just the walls she has built up from her own childhood. Her baby means the world to her surprise and all.

Kaan – totally made me squeak! That complement is huge so thank you so much. Hope school's not being to much of a headache. I know what you mean, midterm week for me too. On the account of the boys both being sick at the same time, gotta feel bad for both Jane and San… can you imagine how much of a baby puck is? Surprised no one has killed him yet.

I'll never tell - I figured I had two weeks I could take my time with it lol


	6. Duets Part 3

Manda's Note: Posting this really quick before Rocky Horror so no note.

Hillary - Best part of college isn't it… the near freedom lol. She's Santana… gotta hold up that image. what's a few more guys here and there, pshh not like it's actually happening. thank you! and I hope you like this chapter as well! it's just a short filler that came out of nowhere really.

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So he'd slept through his son's merciless screaming till Santana had rolled over and pulled him from his crib to her for his three am feeding. He'd nearly gotten away with sleeping through the night, he would have gotten away with sleeping through the night if it hadn't been for the tiny feet kicking him in the head as he attempted to get a little more sleep in. That had lasted till he'd blinked his eyes open and she'd decided that he was awake enough to carry on a conversation and keep her company while she fed their son. What he hadn't accounted for was her actions to follow. He'd known from the moment she'd gotten out of the shower and picked his light blue and white plaid button up off of the floor that it was going to be trouble. He just hadn't known at the time how much she was more than willing to put him through.

"I really wanted that gift certificate to BreadstiX too."

She complained continuing her rant from earlier in the day. One that he'd thought she'd given up on. She talked and moved from her spot beside him to straddling his hips. The buttons of the shirt hanging open to leave him in full view of her chest. For ten weeks it hadn't enticed him… all that much. Now though, as she sat on his hips and his hands slipped up under the hardly covering in the first place shirt to rest on her thighs his fingers brushed the soft tanned skin lightly and she paid no attention to what she was doing. Her eyes just locked downward on their son.

The comfort level she'd had with her body came without shame before Gabe had been born. The way she'd always pranced around in her cheerios uniform knowing that everyone's eyes were glued to her and solely her. Now it'd just gotten worse. Her body was one of her best weapons against him and she didn't even seem to notice it. She as completely unhinged on top of him, shirt unbuttoned, warm body covering his lower half, had she not had a child in her arms he might have lost what little self control he actually had.

"Do you remember going almost every Friday night before they closed and no one was in there we'd go just to piss off that blonde waitress? I miss those nights."

As she talked he stared at her body just slightly illuminated in the dim lamp light. It was just enough for him to stare and to not be caught. All he had to do was give him random 'un huh's' and 'mhm's' and he was pretty sure he'd be set until the baby decided he'd had enough and it was time to go back to sleep. The only bad thing about that would have been he knew she'd be ready to lie down and go back to sleep too.

"How many times have we had sex in those bathroom stalls anyway?"

Her smirk was on her face but she wasn't anywhere near thinking what he was thinking. She just had to mention it on top of everything else. She was trying to be the death of him, he was almost sure of it. His hands slipped further up her side till they were on her hips, his pinky and ring fingers dipped ever so slightly under the waistband of her boy shorts as he attempted to satisfy himself with touch.

"Wheezy isn't all that bad to work with when you're not trying to get in her pants and we don't have much to argue ….or talk about. Which I still for the life of me can't figure out, just told me I had no reason to be body conscious that week what so ever."

He was probably supposed to get something out of that statement other than what he had but, it hadn't exactly worked like that. The sentence had made it through his brain for one reason. A reason that probably wasn't why it should have made it through in the first place.

"Trust me San, you have no reason to ever… ever be body conscious."

Yep, he'd been right on that accord. It made her raise her eyes from the contented infant to look at him with an eyebrow raised. Didn't take her more than a minute to bite her tongue and shake her head and he didn't even notice. He was too busy looking at the body he knew every curve and mark of.

"I slept with Sam"

She said nonchalantly, only testing him of course, that wasn't something she'd actually let happen or that she'd do. She might not have been over the whole Quinn/Baby drama thing yet but she wasn't about to throw away everything she had just to get ahead of the bitch. Her sentence should have elicited some type of comment out of him all she'd gotten was an 'uh huh' his eyes were to focused elsewhere to even remotely hear anything that was coming out of her mouth.

"Made out with Rachel too while I was at it"

The words made her cringe, just the thought of that shook her regardless if it would have shut her up for a little while. The only time Rachel was good for anything was when she was distracting Shue. Other than that Santana only dealt with her when she had no choice, she didn't hate the girl she just didn't have any use for her.

"I have eyes you know"

For some reason the word eyes pulled him out of his blatantly obvious stare to raise his own hazel ones to meet her annoyed chocolate glare. He attempted to smirk at her as he watched her sit their son up a little bit to burp him, her annoyed face still fully intact. Yep, he was going to pay… specially as his eyes once again drifted downward.

"Sorry"

Came his fully distracted mumble before she stopped patting Gabe's back for a moment to pull the button up almost together and pinch the skin of his hip like a six year old looking for revenge on a bully on the arm. She'd put it in front of him did she really expect him to stay calm and not stare?

"Oww… San… What the hell was that for?"

He was a baby when it came to being pinched, he'd always been. She knew his weaknesses quiet well of course. His hand went straight to the welted red skin as he pouted and she readjusted the infant to the other side with a smirk.

"Stop looking at my boobs Puck."

Without even having to look at him she knew exactly where his eyes were. she could feel his hands rubbing lines from her hips to her thighs and more than anything it was making her want to hurt him. She wasn't up for that and neither should he have been, what exactly did the breathing treatments for his congested lungs have in them?

"I can't help it… they're right in my face and they… I mean you look good."

It would have been safer if he'd shut his mouth and just stared, better off if he'd just fallen back to sleep. Instead he felt her getting off of him after giving him a slight shove to his chest. The only thing left behind was the reminder of where she'd been sitting which didn't exactly help his plea to get her back very much as she glanced at him and shook her head before buttoning up a few buttons and walking their infant back and forth across the room trying to both burp and sooth him. Not that he was ever much of a problem at night.

"Go take a cold shower Puck…"

She lulled out and he knew he didn't have much other choice, she wasn't going to make it go away.

Yet, he should have known her better than that. He should have expected that ten minutes into his cool shower the temperature of the water would be pushed up to warm as she let herself in with him. It was just a good thing Jane would be out cold from getting home from her late shift and re charging to take care of Gabe for another day. what did didn't know wouldn't kill her and wouldn't get them a lecture. For a little while anyway they got to be their old selves without a infant in the next room, for a moment their worries that went as far as deciding what Gabe was wearing the following weekend for Halloween were out of sight.


	7. RHGS Part 1

**Manda's Note**: My very first flashback to summer in this! I love this chapter and the second half of this is gonna be even better. I don't know how many to say to go along with this either just a second half or a part three too. So who's seen the photos of Mark Salling with the baby on set? I screamed out loud the moment I saw them! That's my Gabe! yepp totally Gabe. as you can see if you go on my profile I made my own picture out of it to make myself happy lol. anyway, I'm going to try to update everything once this weekend and sunday I hope to have a few cute halloween drabbles on hand. Next weekend is the PS takeover i'm hearing? I don't know what time or anything but, i'll be hard at work writing stuff for that. in the mean time leave me your thoughts on this! I'm looking forward to them! **enjoy**!

Oh! another Note! so I went to claires and bought the silly bandz, the Glee ones. and now the guitar and the cheerleader are resting around my wrist as well as my **Cystic Fibrosis **bands (my three year old nephew has CF) gotta represent PS ;)

**Hillary**- well I hope it sticks to being that way throughout it! She's still Santana and when it comes to Puck she's gotta keep him entertained right? I feel like Santana should be proud of her body, she's always had that confidence but having Gabe only intensified it. she doesn't need Sylvester to pat her on the back when she loses weight all she needs to do is look at Gabe's face to feel better now. as for lol, that's adorable, sounds like you've picked a good one. and that is how I see Puck being, he's got what he didn't realize he wanted until Quinn was telling him she was giving their daughter up, and this time he got it from the right girl, the girl he's always loved. I feel very very honored to have you reading it… honestly. :) as for the rest of my stories I'd say that they're not worth reading (and this is going to sound truly considered) but I pour everything I've got into them . they're my enjoyment.

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"No Noah… you couldn't have come with us… Noah… everyone in Lima thinks you're in Juvie. I'm in charge today… no you're not getting a say in what he's being, neither one of you are."

As she argued on with her stuffy, congested and moody son she felt bad for her grandson for having to put up with the parents he had. One texted her every ten minutes and the other called her about every five. As if they didn't know she'd already raised two… practically three children on her own. Given, the eldest didn't exactly turn out to full potential all the time it wasn't exactly her fault. She used to be able to go twenty-four hours without her son calling her back, even after she'd called him a million times herself.

"And, you had better tell Santana when she gets there at lunch that she IS going back to school after she's done there. For one I can only handle one grandchild next time she's not going to be so lucky to hardly show especially since she's eating again. For two, I don't feel like hearing her bitch and complain about Sue Sylvester berating her for missing practice."

No one was around her, she'd parked the Volvo in close to the last row, the most convenient spot for her to take both his infant car seat and his carriage. Both items of which she hadn't been allowed to buy, Santana had done that all on her own with a small portion of the money she saved from her father every month, she'd been doing that since she was twelve and he decided she was old enough to stay in the house alone. But, she'd driven forty-five minutes away all on her own and bought the infant car seat and carriage in deep red and brown colors. Jane suspected she shed a tear or two as she drove him over the fact that she was kissing away the innocence she'd never really had to begin with, but, Ana didn't cry in front of people. She cussed, she taunted, she mocked but she didn't cry.

"No I am not going to buy him a chucky outfit… you know as well as I do that if I do that Santana won't ever touch her son again. No he is not going to be a demon either… I don't remember… you were a bunny for your first Halloween, you were a month older than he is…she… Gabby didn't dress her up. She was hardly a month old… go back to sleep Noah, you're aggravating me."

Placing the infant car seat in the carriage right till it locked into place she looked in at her grandson peacefully wide awake and sucking on his pacifier without a care in the world. His reflection made her smile, he was the most contented baby she'd ever dealt with. How that was possible she wasn't quite sure. Listening to her son rattle on in her ear she shook her head and watched Gabe as she pulled up his blanket over the little jeans and black and blue plaid shirt she'd decided to put on him for the day. After being left out a shirt that said 'Chicks Dig Me' and another with the wording 'My Mommy is a Fox' she'd decided that Gabe's parents needed to be fired from clothes picking for the day and she was much better off taking matters into her own hands.

"I'm getting off the phone Noah… Gabriel and Aunt Jane are going in the mall now… don't call me for at least an hour."

Hearing a grumble before a click she laughed to herself, maybe now he was starting to know what it felt like when he drove her insane. Though Aunt Jane felt funny to say in public she didn't have many other options till he started to talk and learned how to rat his parents out. but for the time being, Puck and Santana had been the ones to decide the day he was born that he was to be there secret. The fact that he'd been born so far away from home had helped assist in that. She could still remember the morning the chaos had started.

* * *

_"MOMMMMMM Ana and Noah locked themselves in the bathroom AGAIN!"_

_Puck's eight year old sister screamed as she tried jiggling the door handle to the upstairs bathroom for the millionth time. Her tooth brush was in there and she'd already been told five times to brush her teeth so that they could leave already. It was seven o'clock in the morning and it was getting late they had give or take an hour and forty-five minute drive to get going on. As Jane threw her head back with a loud sigh she pinched the bridge of her nose for a second, she really needed a vacation away from the madness._

_"Shut up Squirt! It's not my goddamn fault she's being a self-conscious bitch and won't get away from the door."_

_The slap was heard throughout the house, something that Jane couldn't even react to fast enough without cringing first. Walking to the other counter and grabbing a few things out of various bottles she headed straight for the bathroom door._

_"You shut your fucking mouth Noah Puckerman…"_

_And the sixteen and seventeen year olds were supposed to have a baby? Marching up the stairs she wasn't sure how many patients she had, it was their idea to go on the annual day outing to Cedar Point._

_"NOAH and SANTANA you both had better open this door right now."_

_Jane seethed out as the lock on the door popped open right away to revile her son screwing the cap back on the coco butter already over the obvious slap to the side of his red and no doubt tingling face. yet somehow Santana had a glare on her face and Puck kept a cool smirk front. Giving them a look that said 'what the hell is going on in here' she waited for one of them to explain their actions._

_"He said there was a stretch mark…"_

_Looking back and forth between the two annoyed she shook her head. It wasn't like it was a big secret that she got a full body massage four times a day with coco butter… Jane knew she'd never again teach the pair morals or decency if she ever had in the first place of course._

_"Santana, you do not look like you're seven months pregnant. Stop fussing, what did your doctor tell you? You need to gain more weight San… the baby's going to come out all skin and bones if you don't. what did you eat yesterday because I know you didn't eat dinner and Puck didn't make pancakes."_

_Doing her job of lecturing she cleaned up the mess of tooth brushes with one hand and put her hand out to put the items in her other hand in Santana's._

_"one prenatal vitamin, two different types of allergy meds, and my favorite… your anxiety med."_


	8. Never Been Kissed

**Manda's Note**: I'm so sorry you guys, I don't mean to be so behind on this. My block is starting to diminish, its just taking a while. I have a one shot that's wicked long, its called **Made To Be Broken **next chapter has a reflection of that and nothing to do with the next two eps I believe... i'm still working it out. I'm just mentioning it because there's a detail about Santana's mother in it that's important. sorry this has taken so long, i'm getting back into the swing of writing again it's just taking longer than I expected to find my muse.

**Hillary **- Part two will be up one day, I'll go back and put it up. I have it half written I've just fallen so far behind that I don't see the use in it right now. I'm so sorry that it's taken so long to post this, there's been a lot going on and I haven't been able to escape what so ever regardless of how much I wish I could. actually! Santana not eating was due to Sue's strict dieting rule. it's a little hard to kick when you've gone two years living on nothing really but shakes. and the anxiety meds she's been on since her mother was killed when she was nine. She's had a lot to deal with in her life and they regulate her moods …somewhat. I know this chapter isn't my best and I'm sorry, they'll get better again soon!

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"You're still whining about the god damn egos?"

Dinner had been awkward to say the least and his juvenile acts on his first week back at school had pissed her off. Sure, they kept up the façade of being normal well but giving poor Artie heart failure probably wasn't the best way to prove that he was still Noah Puckerman. No one was actually questioning the fact that he'd changed, he still seemed like the same normal asshole at school and she held up her deal of being the untouchable bitch. Though his antics were driving her up the wall with immature annoyance, playing as dumb was Brittany wasn't all that fun. Yet with him the dumb comments just rolled out of her mouth in reaction to him.

"Yes I'm still whining about the egos. How could I not whine about the egos? I was all set and ready to eat them and they ended up on the floor. That wasn't fair."

He was such a baby about things. Glancing over at him and rolling her eyes she stopped at the red light and shook her head at him. she'd heard the story about the breakfast food all too many times. From the day it' happened he'd whined to herself, Li, and Jane till he'd finally given up and gone to sleep. Santana was pretty sure even Gabe was tired of hearing the story regardless or not if it was the child's unintentional fault and all. She just wasn't sure when their son had turned into a juvenile delinquent, eleven months old and already taking after his father …she was doomed.

"Puck …seriously?"

She pinched the bridge of her nose for a moment before the light turned green and she pushed the car further along on the way home from Bread StiX. Home was the only place she wanted to be, laying in bed with her smiley little boy rather than listening to any more ranting and raving about the stupid egos.

"What? You'd be upset too if you were getting breakfast and he kicked the plate so that your egos fell on the floor. I didn't think he had it in him …and they were the last egos in the house! If he wanted some he could have given me some other clue. But that was just plain mean. I mean… I was planning on eating them and I was hungry. He just had to kick them away on me."

Time number one hundred and twelve, each time it sounded more and more sad. Fighting with an eleven week old who'd kicked frozen egos to the floor. It just went to prove that they did still have their kid-ish tendencies about them. At least Puck still had them to him.

"I'm just glad you didn't have any syrup on them. Because you know as well as I do that he probably has my allergy to it. Wouldn't want to have to explain to the doctor that you dropped your breakfast on our son because you were trying to balance a paper plate on his legs so that you had a free hand."

Out of the corner of her eye as she pulled into the driveway she could see the pout on his face. Something that wasn't surprised about, when it came to his egos story and being mooched he should have been used to being made fun of. Had he told Artie the true story that he'd had a fight with his son over it Artie probably would have mocked him rather than hung on his every word too.

"Why are you tormenting wheels anyway?"

Turning off the engine she sat there for a moment watching him. It wasn't very often that they got a quiet moment without people as it was. Taking off his seatbelt he slid toured her, his hand reaching out to drag a finger against her jaw as he watched her for a moment a smirk across his features.

"We've been friends with Brittany since we were seven. Gotta look out for Pigtails. Besides, if we get her occupied then it gives us more time to be just us. Free time to be with our son."

There was something in listening to him say son that always made Santana stop, something foreign about it yet at the same time something that she needed to hear. Yet she wasn't about to admit it to him. Instead she rolled her eyes at the thought of him being an aid to keeping Brittany away from for a while. She couldn't say that she'd honestly thought too much about it, things were different then they'd always been but it wasn't something she complained about. She was more than content watching him lying on the floor watching the dust particles in the air. Maybe he was more like Brittany?

"So… boys verses girls… we're going to kick your asses again."

His cocky attitude took over as he smirked and got out of the car causing her eyebrow to go up as she watched him and rolled her eyes. Of course she was up for the competition last year they'd had the advantage of uppers and this year she had to deal with Rachel who would without a doubt make everything about her as always. There was really something about Rachel that was starting to rub Santana's last nerve. One of these days she was going to get on her sleep deprived nerves and she's end up flipping out in front of all of Glee Club without restraint.

"If I remember correctly last year you guys did a mashup of 'It's My Life and Confessions' got anything else to spill to me this year in song? Because if it's another secret then I think that maybe you should just open your mou…"

Before she could continue ranting and raving he'd pulled her into an eye closing kiss, his arms around her nice and tightly as she forgot about Beth for a few moment and everything else that came with the drama of the past year. She hated the way he was always able to do it.

"Think you can tell our kid not to steal my egos again?"


	9. November 16th

**Manda's Note**: Made to Be Broken was the first ever PS one shot that I wrote. In it I fleshed out a lot of who Santana is to me, who they both are. This story was written throughout the months of June and July. well, in it Santana's mother passed away November 16th. That's something I've stuck to continuously When the date passed I felt like it just needed to be a chapter added, just a moment where she introduces Gabe to his Grandmother. This chapter was hard for me to write, as many of you read Mistakes That Make You you know that I just lost my mom on November 15th. I guess somewhere and somehow in this this is me trying to get a little of my own hurt out. The normal chapters will resume and San will of course bounce back to the lovable bitch we all know she is but I just personally felt like this needed to be included. She's not one dimensional, she has reasons that make her the way she is and for me I just feel like this is one of those reasons. Anyway, updates are all coming your way, with two Bike one shots and perhaps a few holiday things. (Like a fight over which Gabe is celebrating)

**Libby**: My updates are for you first and for most. I love you messages and I want you to know that they really honestly do make me feel better. Thank you so much for that because (on days like today when I just want to fall apart) going back and reading them makes me smile and that's what I really need. so thanks love, Don't know what i'd do without :)

**Tigger **- texting you now but just thought i'd include, your the reason I even thought to write this :) 3

**Hilary **– I thought it was the most mediocre chapter that I've written yet when I re read it yesterday. I vision in my head had been so much better. I can't wait to get started on the past few eps, there was so much in them to work with and now that I'm done (or almost done I have my sign class left) with finals I can finally get moving on them once again. and thank you for pointing out that stuff it helps a lot to get into their heads deeper. :D Hope everything's going well and you have a great holiday too if you don't get time to stop and review again. Love reading your reviews but you know that.

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November 16th, from the moment the clock had rolled from 11:59 to 12:00 the empty and broken hole in her heart had re broken its way through her chest to let the agonizing pain linger in full force. You'd think after eight long years the pain would lessen and drift. Yet, year after year it only seemed to blaze a worse feeling. She'd felt the arms tighten their grip around her waist as the clock changed over, he knew her well enough to know that she treaded a line between shattered and vicious. In so many ways she was still that little girl standing on the street looking for her mommy, yet, in so many years she'd never have any bit of that little child back. She'd lost that little girl a long time ago to circumstances that weren't exactly fair. Circumstances that he would have done anything to change for her, from the day it'd happened he's wanted to change the outcomes around.

He didn't say anything, just gave her a little bit more of a squeeze before she slipped out of the bed and walked on shaky legs over to the bassinette. Maybe this year there would be one thing to pull her back and make her not so miserable. All she could remember from last year was him making it that much worse of a day by telling her he'd knocked up Quinn. Something she at least knew wouldn't be happening again this year, that should have made things a little bit better. Instead, the only thing to make her feel the slightest bit of the gaping hole closing was the still tiny infant sound asleep in his own bed. Glancing at him she saw everything she knew she She had yet at the same time he reminded her of all of the things she was missing.

"Just be careful"

Though his tone was even she could detect the worry more than obvious in his words; no one would ever expect Noah Puckerman to have the numerous sides that he did have. This side of him, the side that she knew hadn't been to sleep yet and instead had watched her struggle to get past every moment that had ticked closer to the painful date of the sixteenth, this side of him was the side she without a doubt loved. Silently nodding her head Santana Lopez picked up their infant son and cradled him to her chest before looking around for his car seat. Regardless if it was chilly and regardless if it was the middle of the night, there was one place she wanted to be. A place that she knew she needed to go and have him with her when she did so. She couldn't even verbalize a response to him to tell him that she would be. Instead she simply nodded her head and placed the baby in his infant car seat with the soft red and white cotton blanket over him to keep him warm from the nippy November air.

Her drive there was completely silent other than the sound of Gabriel sucking on the pacifier she knew he hated. Even the baby seemed to understand that his mother was hurting and pensive. She drove with the radio off, the sound in her head, a voice that she'd been so worried about fading. One that had stuck with her for eight years, one that she could still hear saying, "I love you baby girl now go to sleep mija" before serenading her with a soft version of 'Part of your world' from The Little Mermaid. She knew it was a date that had faded from the memory of most after eight years but it was a reminder that plagued her every day with every breath she took.

Taking a deep breath she took him out of his car seat and held his warm little body close to her as she made her way through the dark cemetery to the area where in the spring time the cheery blossom bloomed full of life and pink flowers. the normally head strong cheerleader as far from her normal self as she took a seat on the bench and tucked her knees underneath her the wide awake baby in her arms staring back at her with wonder.

"Hey mom"

She whispered at the rock in front of her holding back as much of her emotions as she could. Last thing she wanted to do was scare Gabe into crying and break the eerie quiet of the night. So instead she rocked him back and forth a little bit and continued to stare at the headstone in the dark night.

"Look how big he's gotten, he's healthy now though. All caught up with weight, think he gets that from his daddy… it still feels strange to say that... bet you can't even imagine Puck as a father. He's been good though, best part of the day is watching them sleep together. Other than the cold he had all through October I think Puck and I are doing a pretty good job. Course Jane helps… ok so she's a huge help and I can bet you're sitting on his shoulder too. He's gotta have some angel on his shoulder to get him through days with us as his parents. I know you're probably still in shock and a little disappointed in us but…. I honestly can't make any apologies for him. Stud's pretty good at making all the things around me seem not so big."

A side of the cheerio was out that no one else would get to see, the side of herself that she kept protected and reserved from the threat of being hurt anymore than she'd been in the past. There after all was a valid reason Santana Lopez kept up all of her defense mechanisms. Tightening the soft blanket around her son she looked back down at him and watched him as he stared back at her completely content with the pacifier in his mouth for the first time ever. As she held him she thought about her mother and all of the things she'd never share with her, all of the lectures she'd never receive for the things she'd done, and all of the 'I'm proud of you' smiles that would never nod her way. Losing her mother had been an aid in making her who she was, the things she'd been through held the reasons for her callous and badass exterior but none of it mattered when it came down to it. The fact was simple when it boiled down to it, she was still the kid who'd lost her mother. One of the things that had shaped her to be what Gabe needed.

"I told you when I came to visit you the night after he was born that I was going to do everything with him that you never got to do with me and I wasn't ever going to let him feel a pain like the one I'd felt and still do feel. I still do mean that. I get that I'm young and probably a little bit stupid for taking this all on at seventeen but he's… he's worth it. I can hear everyone in my head, you know, if they knew about him… I can hear them questioning why I'd let something like this ruin my life. How someone like me could be 'dumb' enough to let something like him happen. I know we're young but honestly, right now… ok not right now but lately I've felt better than I have in years. Both because of having Gabe and… and Puck. I'm sure you noticed that candid and stupidly childish heart he made last week with his hands while he and the boys were singing in glee… I felt like a stupid in love kid. I hate how he can do that to me. Stupid little …butterflies. Even after he put me through the hell of pushing out his kid."

Not that she minded of course, labor hadn't been so bad. She'd had worse injuries from her father. Besides, he's held her hand the entire time she freaked out worried that their baby would be in less than ok condition. She'd never seen him as worried and scared as he'd been when the doctors had paused a moment before placing the crud covered newborn preemie in his father's arms first.

"I still wish you were here mom, I wish I could have you here to tell me when I'm doing this wrong or call e out when I'm being too selfish. I wish you could see him smile and be around when he starts to walk or crawl or say his first words. Every little thing mom… when I think about it… I know you're not gonna ever see him through any of this and that kills me. This is so much more than wanting you here when I made cheerios or needing you when he told me that he'd gotten Quinn pregnant. I'm a mother mom, I'm a mother and I'm learning how to do it all by myself without you."

Her words were starting to become disconnected and harder to get out as she rambled through her thoughts and fears and clung to her little boy for dear life. Her visits never got easier, her 'I miss you's' were always tough. In the moment she learned even moving on and having her own child to need her and rely on her every move and word wasn't ever going to fill the void left behind by losing her own. Instead she clutched onto Gabe and let the tears slip.

"Tink come here"

She should have known he'd do it, she should have known that he wouldn't let her be alone to grieve. Instead she felt his muscular arms wrap around her protectively.


	10. The Substitute

Manda's Note: Ok my loves why haven't you fired me yet? I deserve to be fired for sure. I'm so sorry that all and any updates have taken so long. I took Christmas and the weeks after Christmas to visit my best friend. I have almost everything started with replies. I just have to finish them so I can get them to you! I know I have a lot to catch up with when it comes to gabe and I promise I'll get to it. So now since I'm snowed in (and I fully plan on making a snowman ...twenty? psh just a number) I'll be working on the rest of the updates that I owe you all. Thank you so much for your reviews and please keep them coming!

Hilary - Thank you for your words and thoughts and prayers, the holidays were just tough and I took a few weeks away. Things haven't been the same and I haven't really been in my mind but I'm getting back in to the swing of things now. It's hard and I miss her more than anything, it's tough but I'm working on it, we were very very close so I haven't been myself. getting back to figuring out my life once again now. Thank you so much for your thoughts, they really mean a lot :)

as for the chapter! This next chapter shows that they're the same people they've always been. just because they have the sweet and nurturing side doesn't mean that the old Puck and Santana aren't still in them. I wish I was working with the writers. Gabe would be written in in a heartbeat! I love to believe that they have a child that they're hiding …that's my story and I'm sticking to it! eep I'm so anxious to finish writing the other chapters up! I think they'll do you proud! I'm hoping so anyway. can't wait to hear your thoughts on this chapter!

Melissa – Thank you! I worked very very hard on this chapter and it means a lot to me that it moved you the way it did. Losing my mom's the hardest thing that's ever happened to me. Don't forget even when yours is annoying you (as all moms do) never leave the house without saying 'I love you' :)

**enjoy!**

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"Remind me to steal Mike's hand sanitizer when he gets in the room."

With a smirk on her face she glanced up at him as she wiped her hands on his letterman jacket and he zipped up his jeans with his back turned to her finally under control. She kicked the trash can back to the corner of the room throwing a few pieces of sheet music over the evidence that they'd been stowaways in the choir room when they weren't supposed to be in there. Wasn't like they got very much alone time when they were home. Not with a happy and bubbly three month old baby who was starting to like more and more time with mommy and daddy as the constant in their lives. They did what they had to do when they had a free moment to do so. If they were reduced to getting some in the school it wasn't anything new. They'd been using a janitor's closet since they'd gotten to the high school in the first place as it was.

"I promise I'll repay you some time lat… Santana …really? you had to use my jacket?"

He actually looked surprised with her actions, that of which she couldn't understand. It wasn't like it was the first time she'd done something like it to him. She kind of like causing him to cringe and question her actions, it was something he did often. Driving him crazy really wasn't anything new. That was the way they'd always seemed to complete one another.

"Hey …at least it wasn't someone else I wiped off on your coat"

The statement gave even him the chills for a moment as he took his coat away from her and tossed it off to the side of the glee room. he'd remember to give it to his mom to take to the cleaners to wash… he'd just have to make sure to not tell her what exactly was all over it. wasn't like the it was the first time an 'unknown' substance had been all over him.

"Still don't understand why you hadn't just suc…"

He missed catching her hand to stop the slap to his cheek. Of course, it wasn't anything harsh but normally he remembered to stop her. Normally though, she had an infant in her arms. Gabe was Puck's new mechanism of defense when it came to breaking her down when he threw out a perverted suggestion.

"Try if Quinn had just stuck with sucking you, you wouldn't have gotten into the mess you got into last year now would you have?"

It was a low blow and they both knew it that was the exact reason she patched it up by kissing him a kiss that nearly made him need another hand. Instead she pulled away and fixed her lip gloss before leaning her forehead against his shoulder with a contented sigh. They might have been at school but, there was no one around. They could get away with the semi sweet moments. Picking her up he sat her down on top of the piano allowing her to lean down to lazily kiss him rather than keeping on tip toes any longer. She'd been so down that she could practically say anything she wanted to him without earning a negative reaction. The Seventeenth of November the verbal shots she took at everyone were still moody and defiant.

"Tried to take your anger out on Rachel today …want to talk about it?"

Asking between kisses probably wasn't the best way to make her happy but he couldn't help but wonder. That and he'd been royally pissed off with the placement of Sam's hands on her body. Santana herself had just been glad he hadn't attempted to put his hands any higher, she would have had an issue with the Justin Bieber wannabe then. Putting his hand on the back of her neck he pulled her closer to him to start on her neck. He was Puck, he knew the ways to soften her up.

"Why don't you go 'talk' Holly Holiday"

Knowing that one was coming he moved his hands from her neck to stroke a straight line down her back, hands resting on the waist line of her cheerios skirt as he took a step back to look at her. Her sincerities were acting up again and she felt threatened. It was an emotion he knew that she went through all too often, something that she'd always gone.

"Santana look at me"

He whispered and put his hand under her chin making her look at him, for a moment he couldn't see the sexy self sufficient bitch that she always attempted to make herself. The only thing he could see was the innocence behind her, the innocence that carried over from the day before at the cemetery, the innocence that was always in her when she gave Gabe a bath or laid with him on the floor tormenting him with kiss and trying to coax his very first laugh out of him, something that she still hadn't managed to do.

"Do not do the whole jealous of the substitute thing. You know that its bullshit. Yes, she's hot but …you're hotter and I mean that in every way."

Serious moments were not for Noah Puckerman, he always had a habit of breaking them. Instead, his hands went right down and under her cheerios skirt to slipping her red spandex off till it hit the choir room floor. He knew of all the ways to distract her into feeling better. Damn him for being so good at it too. His fingers traced lines up the inside of her thighs teasing her.

"You did lock the door right?"

Throwing a glance over to choir room door before she wrapped her arms around his neck and settled their distance with a steamy kiss they didn't hear the latch unlock its self till the obnoxious blonde was standing in the doorway clearing her throat.

"Always so easy to just let him back in Santana, one day you'll get it through your head that Puck doesn't settled down for anyone. He wouldn't even do it for me when I was pregnant. You'd think having a kid would be something to drag him into reality."

With that Quinn slammed out the door and the mood was broken as Santana pulled away from the kiss and pushed his hands out from under her skirt still on edge. Her mood was broken. Hopping down from the piano she put the red lollypop pants back on and glared at him with her arms crossed.

"Give me the keys to my car …I have to go see MY son."


	11. RHGS Part 2

Manda's Note: Hey guys! I'm so sorry that i've like stopped updating. I was handed a Pucktana distraction that I can hardly pull myself away from. If any of you tumblr RP you'll understand. Anyways! This is something that i'd never finished still this morning. and I will try to start working on Gabe again. All reviews for this chapter will be responded to the way I normally respond to reviews! I promise! so yea, i'm sorry about everything.

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Party at Karofsky's place tonight… you in?

Meg Randall had had a crush on Noah Puckerman since she'd put on her Cheerios uniform for the first time. She'd gone down on him a few times too. She was also Santana Lopez's biggest annoyance. It wasn't any better now that she was texting him either. Bitches like her were the reason Santana every once and a while checked his phone even if she had no right to. They both understood her reasons for being so insecure when it came to him. He didn't complain about it anymore either.

"Yea, I know last time I checked it was a cheerio tradition last time I checked. …you going?"

They weren't anywhere near home but that didn't matter. it wasn't like the party would start till way into the early hours of the morning anyway. It'd been a very long time since Santana had gone to the football players and cheerios Halloween party. since she'd crashed it her eighth grade year to be exact. The thoughts of the party still made her shutter as he guessed where her thoughts were and put his hand on her back rubbing the scar through his football jersey that she'd put on before they'd left the house. He knew all too well how sensitive the subject of party scenes were for her. One of the many reasons her anxiety pills would forever be just as important as her allergy meds. Quiet for a moment, they both stood silent and watched his little sister, dressed up as Tinkerbell skip up to a door with her candy bag.

"You know I don't care if you do. Just figure out a way to explain getting out of Juvie for a night."

Wasn't like he couldn't figure out a way to get out of that, he could always tell everyone at the party he'd slept with one of the female security guards to let him out for the night and all of the morons probably would have hung on his every word. Instead though he kissed the back of her head letting his arms drop from around her waist and stepped over to the side of her, enough to peer in at the sleeping infant all covered in with blankets. He thought she'd over done it with packing the fleece and cotton till he'd actually felt the bitter air.

**I'll be sure to make it worth your while**

Her eyes rolled at the text as she held up his phone. Needless to say it was part of keeping their reputations that she didn't so much care for. He smirked as he read the message and reached for his phone from her hand. She resisted the urge to smash it on the ground. she'd done that to plenty of his cell phones before, it wasn't like it was something Jane would be surprised at if he said he suddenly needed a new one. What she hadn't noticed at first was him holding in the end button and slipping it back into the cup holder of the carriage beside her apple cider.

"Ma can call your phone if she needs us. I'm doing time in juvie babe, no getting out once you're in."

Pulling the draw string to his sweatshirt he moved closer to her for a moment confused as she kissed him, not their normal _to prove a point_ kiss either. It was just a simple meeting of the lips, a kiss that held a louder message than all of the times a teacher walked in and he had her pinned to the top of a desk while all of the jealous onlookers labeled them both in their heads with names they'd never dear speak outside. Stepping on the lock to make sure the carriage wouldn't go anywhere and looking to make sure that his baby sister was heading back for the carriage he grabbed her hips and pulled her closer to him. His lips pressed right above the left lens of her glasses. She looked up catching his lips in another simple moment as Li, now peering in at her nephew tapped her foot impatiently. The eight year olds eyes were slowly becoming heaver with sleep.

"Tell you what, you drive home tonight. Once those kids are both sound asleep in the backseat I'll give you a preview of why you're staying home tonight."

She whispered, her voice dropping low to avoid little ears that would surly tattle and stay awake at the slightest inclination that they were doing anything that Jane had said not to or would condone. She'd done a better job of telling on them since Gabe had been born then before Gabe had been in existence.

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"Where's the baby?"

Seeing her walk into the den without Gabe in her arms and Li's candy bowl instead confused him. He was almost sure that their little bug would spend the entire night in hers or his arms after the Halloween he had. Saying it was cold out was an understatement. Yet, they'd driven all the way to Cedar Point so that Li could trick or treat. Sure, Puck taking Li out by himself might have been the logical answer but when did the two of them actually think logically? With Jane working the night shift it wasn't like they had many options. Instead at four o'clock on a Sunday afternoon they'd packed up the car, dressed Li and Gabe and set out for spending Gabe's first holiday back where he'd been born. The evening had been cold and brutal. He'd been bundled up so much that the penguin outfit and hat Jane Puckerman had decided to dress him up as for his first Halloween had been completely blocked out by blankets to keep him warm instead. Gabriel had been completely content to sleep and suck on his pacifier.  
"Sound asleep in his crib."  
She sat down beside him and the first thing he did was pull her by her hips into his lap, her head going back so that he could kiss her softly at first, his hand traveling under the sweatshirt she had on to rest on the bare flesh there. Neither one of them felt like they were seventeen anymore and they hadn't felt that way for a while. It was almost scary how things changed. Neither one of them would have traded it though, the little boy laying sound asleep in their room was just proof that thing were the way they were meant to be. At least for a while.


	12. The First Time

**Manda's Note**: So let's see ...who hasn't disowned me even though I fully deserve it? Well today is 11:11:11 it must be a lucky day. Much more Pucktana coming ;] Leave your thoughts!

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"Another visit today?"

She stood in the doorway of the living room with her arms crossed on her chest. She didn't feel like being there. Even that felt like an understatement. But he'd missed West Side Story rehearsal and it really pissed her off. She didn't have the time to waste in the stupid musical after school as it was. She didn't want to be around _them_. For once it wasn't just him that she didn't care for it was every single one of the _'New Directions'_. Like she hadn't done anything for the group over the years Schue was constantly turning his back on her and ignoring everything that wasn't something he wanted to see. She'd reached her final breaking point when she'd left the group. Then again she'd hit her breaking point with a lot of things, maybe it'd all stated when he'd turned his back on her for Lauren. That had been their biggest down fall. And while she didn't want to admit it she hated every moment of not being near him, every moment of knowing that he was just fine without her. Knowing he was just fine without them. He'd practically picked up Quinn and that 'other family' in her eyes. She couldn't help her jealous, she couldn't help resenting him. It was only a year ago that she' woken up in his arms day after day. She had a bit of reason to be bitter on the whole thing. This wasn't the way things were supposed to turn out. They weren't supposed to be that typical teenage couple. They were better than that …at least she'd thought they were.

"All you ever do is come in here and complain anymore."

Rolling her eyes at his comment she walked to the corner of the room where the Toy Story backpack sat on a chair. She reached for it, her bitterness making it more of a grab than an easy grasp. She didn't bother to look at him again, not until she had herself better under control. Instead she simply fixed the stuff into neat piles at the bottom of the bag. Touching his stuff always calmed her down more. He was the end to all of her short fuses most of the time. In front of Puck it was all a different story. She needed to count in her head, she needed to slow her actions. She'd never been able to just 'fight' with him. It'd always been a tossup from one extreme to the next. The better part of her knew that if she took a moment to let her guard down she'd probably start to cry. This was all hard, doing this whole thing day after day was difficult back when things were good. Things had been bad for nearly a year now and it just seemed to get more and more difficult as the time passed. There were so many things that they weren't sharing anymore. So many things that they'd sworn they'd never miss together. Those promises were just empty and broken now. As tough as that was to admit out loud it was true. She could feel her chest starting to constrict. Her eyes wanted her to cry. She knew she couldn't but she wanted to. She wanted to ask him why this had happened to him. Then the one thing that always brought her back from the edge did one of the things it was best at.

"maaaaaa mama maaaa"

Always the light when things were falling apart. She looked down at the fourteen month old baby boy who was now hitting her leg with a toy truck. The smile that covered her face was one that only Gabe could bring on. Her baby. Reaching down she picked up the toddler and for a moment he curled up onto her. His little arms fastening around her neck, head resting on her shoulder. These were the moments that every fight and everything else that was between she and Puck were completely worth it. Gabe was worth every moment of everything that had gone wrong with them. There was a part of her that wanted to admit, but didn't dare, that he was worth every part of fixing the two of them as well.

"Hi my stud, Mommy missed you very much today. You know that? Did you have fun with Daddy? Did you drive him crazy like I told you to?"

Gabe had grown up so much from that little infant who they passed around an fought over sharing. He wasn't the infant she sat with in the rocking chair feeding in the middle of the night anymore. Instead he was the thing that kept her sane, the one that gave her reason to protect from the harshness that would be the world of McKinley. Turning her head slightly she kissed his cheek and stayed there for a moment not moving, breathing in the lavender soap she'd bathed him in that morning. Calming herself done more from earlier outbursts. He always seemed to do the trick. Soon he grew tire of being snuggled to her. Kissing his forehead one last time she knelt down to stand him up on the ground, fixing his guitar tee shirt as she did so. Something she'd picked out because she knew Puck would love it, yep, she still shopped like that.

"Come on Gabriel, why don't you try walking to daddy again."

First steps were one of those things that she didn't want to go through alone. She'd just about knocked him down whenever he tried to walk when they were at the apartment in Lima heights. Just because she was ticked at Puck didn't mean that he should have missed their son's firsts. As much as there were moments in the day when she wished Gabe was just hers and they didn't share him she couldn't just up and forget how much the not so stubborn side of her loved him.

"I knocked him down earlier."

Puck piped up and Santana looked up to meet his eyes. She'd forgotten he was standing there, doing that silent thing of watching the two that she'd gotten so comfortable with the year prior when he' sit by and watch her nursing Gabe. She ached for those moments back. The ones where neither one of them had to say a word, the ones where they were just comfortable being together rather than hiding behind facades of the things they'd now become. Looking up she met his eyes for a moment and just for a second she saw a gimps of the past that she so desperately missed.

"Thanks"

They were both lost for a moment in one another. A short few feet between the two of them while Santana held both of Gabe's hands in what would have been preparation for him to walk if she'd actually been paying attention. Instead the baby's eyes had caught the ball that he and his daddy had been rolling back and forth before she'd gotten there. Breaking their gaze she looked down at the little boy between them and notices the two preoccupation. Carefully she sat him down on his butt and watched as he got down on hands and knees to crawl to the red ball. He had no intention to actually walk, caught somewhere between being lazy and being just as stubborn as the two of them she wasn't really sure which more.

"No, it wasn't a visit today. I came and got Gabe from mom about halfway through the day. We went to the park out in Elida and played on the swings for a bit. I um… I texted you."

All of the awkwardness between the two of them drove her insane. It'd never been that way. Even if they'd been fighting for days she'd always been able to just walk into wherever he was an kiss him like there'd never been an ill word said. This wasn't a case like that though. This was much more difficult than that had been. All because she made it very clear that she didn't want to give Gabe mixed emotions on where they stood. She didn't want anything from him until they both knew where they wanted to be with one another. She looked up from Gabe to Puck again and bit the inside of her cheek.

"My phone's off. I didn't get a chance to run and pay it and I can't exactly pay it by phone if I don't have a phone to call from to do so."

Watching his fists clench she knew exactly what he was thinking. He was once again going over his resentment for her living in Lima Heights. Going without a phone had to have just been the topping on the cake in his ears. It 'wasn't safe' and he didn't like them being there alone. She'd heard it all a million times when she'd first decided to move out of the house to be on her own. She'd ignored everyone of his protests on the matter. Why live together if they couldn't get along. Why do any of that to their son. They'd both grown up around that type of house, they'd both sworn from the beginning that Gabriel's life wouldn't be a thing like that. She'd rather shuffle him between houses than fight in front of him.

"Come home San"

His voice sounded so hurt and so sincere, just like his begging the day that she'd packed up her stuff and took their son out of the house. That was the tone of the Puck she'd love so endlessly over the years. The sound of the Puck who held her hand through the scariest and most thrilling moments of her life. Yet she couldn't do it. There was too much risk in coming home. Too much risk in falling for him again. Jane Puckerman could babysit during the day without being looked at suspicious but there couldn't be a child in the house twenty-four seven without someone from school finding out one way or another. She didn't want to be just another teen mom in a fucked up relationship. She didn't need people looking at her the way they looked at the screw ups on MTV. She was already a slut why affirm everyone's accusations of her?

Not bothering to even argue with him she looked away for a moment ending the argument and waiting for him to o something else. Which he did only seconds later. He walked over to Gabe and the ball that the baby was now playing with. Gabe's little laughing filled her ears and the exclamation of 'dada' made her heart twist and contort a little bit more. She couldn't take her eyes off of them. Just because they were screw-ups in almost every other way it was one thing Puck wasn't when it came to being a father. He was perfect, he had been from the very beginning.

"Rachel held a girls meeting or whatever the other day …everyone was talking about their first times."

Being quiet after the statement caused Puck to look up at her and to study her face for a moment, he didn't need to, he knew which first time she was thinking of she knew he would. His very first time. She though quietly for another moment before opening her mouth. She was to swept up in the memory of that night in the tree house. They'd been awkward and she'd been scared. After the first time that put the scar in her back that would always be a reminder of what happened that night how could she have not been scared. Yet he'd been the tough one, trying not to show his own freaking out emotions. They might have been young then but they'd handled it as though they were much older than they were.

"Did you talk about it with them?"

He didn't have to ask to know the response to his own question. That night was something they'd always just kept between the two of them. Like so many other things that they shared. They didn't need anyone else known about the things that made them human and so destructible. She instead just shook her head and stood there looking down still half lost in her own thoughts. She'd given her opinion of sleeping with Finn and she'd listened to Tina in agreement and admiration. Admiration to talk about that without making jokes or being overly emotional. Just because she was supposed to be the tough one didn't mean she would have been able to talk about their first time without the tears coming to her eyes. It wasn't because it was overly sappy but it was because that was the night that Puck had shown her that she didn't have to be afraid anymore. She didn't have to hear that guy's voice in her head, the night that he showed her that she could trust him more than she'd ever trusted anyone else. The way that a very big part of her still trusted him.

Watching Puck put Gabe to sleep had been her favorite thing to witness a year ago. It'd been way to long since she'd watched a sight like that now. Her eyes were locked on the boys in front of her. The way Gabriel babbled away is if he was taunting Puck whenever he had the ball and then how his little hands curled into fists whenever Puck took it away, an unmistakable pout forming over his features when that happened. He really was a mix of the both of them. Slipping her cheerios jacket off she put it down beside Gabe's backpack and took a seat on the couch, her head resting on the arm of it as she watched them play back and forth with the ball. These were the afternoons that she'd wanted to have more of. The ones that she missed. Settling down on the couch she was more than content to stay there for a while just watching the father and son duo in their play time.

* * *

Sitting on the side of his bed the moonlight poured in through the blinds casting a small bit of light on the slender frame in his bed. She was curled up on her side with the blankets pulled up to her neck, a teddy bear in her arms replacing what he could only bet was their son's every night spot. Puck couldn't take his eyes off of her. It'd been far too long since he'd been able to watch her actually at peace and not bitching and complaining about something or other. Then again he knew that a majority of that was his fault. He'd been the one to put her though all the stress in the first place. He was the one that pushed her away in the very beginning for stupid reasons. It was his fault that he'd pushed her all the way to moving out. It was his fault that he was still driving her to the brink of insanity and he hated it. He hated knowing that she and his son weren't with him at night because of all the stupid decisions he'd made and gone along with in the past. He owed Gabe better than that. He owed Santana better than that. Even if he knew she'd never admit that. She'd do just what she'd done in the beginning and try to turn it all on herself. They could both play both the blame game and the self blame game better than most people.

Falling asleep mid afternoon on his couch he was sure was something she'd freak out about when she opened her eyes but she'd been to out to wake up. So he' picked her up and moved her to his bedroom. Gabe had been exceeded to be sleeping at daddy's house. His face had lit up and his little claps had continued even after Puck had told him to 'shh and let mommy sleep'. Leaning down Puck knew that had she been awake he'd get in trouble for it but he kissed her temple softly, the feel of her skin on his lips he missed more than she'd ever allow him to admit. He watched for a moment longer before standing up from the bed and heading back to the door where Sarah stood with her nephew in her arms impatiently waiting for the heavy little bug to be taken back.

"Dinner time trouble? Wanna help daddy cook?"

The pacifier in Gabe's mouth went in and out contently as he nodded his head as though he understood the task at hand. Puck smiled anyway as he took Gabriel back and through a nod of thanks at his little sister who scurried back to her bedroom to finish her homework before their mother came home for break.

"How's mac and cheese sound? We'll make it just the way that mommy likes it. That sound good buddy?"

These were moments that he still had a hard time believing he could actually do. To show things and share things with his son. He could still recall the day he'd given up Beth, he'd thought that his chance at being a father had been taken away right then and there only to find out a few weeks later that his baby boy was on the way and had no intention of being forced to go anywhere but in his arms. Those were the days he wanted to hold onto most. The days that Puck wanted back. With this whole Beth thing he knew Santana would continue to hold back and while there was a part of him that understood it he still felt torn. He didn't know how to make Santana see that she didn't need to be afraid. They weren't the people they'd been before Gabe was born. He wasn't going to decide that he wanted Quinn and turn his back on her or their son. Sure, he didn't have a very good track record with what had gone on with Lauren but he wasn't going to do that to her again. He couldn't do that to her again. Hurting her hand hurt them both in the long run.  
Pulling the high chair out into the middle of the kitchen he put Gabe down, looking at his pouting face for lack of being carried anymore. Just like Santana when the attention was taken off of him. It made Puck laugh and shake his head at the nearly toddler boy.

"Don't give me that face Gabriel. How am I supposed to make dinner and carry you around? You'll find a way to burn your hand on the stove and them mommy will kill me."

Course, his words didn't erase the pout on the baby's face. He was pretty sure nothing would do that, yet, he tried the only other thing he could think of. Sprinkling a few of the soft cookies onto the tray he kissed the top of Gabe's head and went to the fridge to gather ingredients. Boxed Mac and Cheese wasn't Puckerman style. Nana Connie would probably have found some way to punish him if he'd even attempted the easy way out anyways. He hadn't been taught to cook for nothing.

"Did mommy tell you that she has a very important part in the school musical?"

The soft coos of 'mama' mimicked on as he took a pan out of the cabinet and started to get dinner prepared. He knew he wouldn't be wrong in saying it would be the best meal that either his son or ex had eaten since they'd moved out. It wasn't uncommon knowledge that Santana couldn't hardly make popcorn in the microwave. That was why she was back to looking like a stick yet again, not that she'd ever changed all that much from it.

"Bet she didn't tell you that she looks se… beautiful in the red dress that she has to wear. Even going on and on in Spanish when she's not mad. I miss your mommy Gabe, I miss you and her being home with me every day. I know I messed up, I know she doesn't trust me and she shouldn't. But can you keep a secret Gabe?"

A bit preoccupied with the cookies in front of him he wasn't paying any mind to the words coming out of his father's mouth. He was too busy slobbering all over everything and testing out his teeth. Best person for Puck to talk to about things he had trouble admitting out loud. He'd been that way since the day he was born anyways.

"I love her bud, I love her more than she'll ever give me a chance to."

* * *

**Hilary**: I really hope you stumble across this again. You reading it means the world to me. I hope you know that.3 I miss your insightful reviews.


	13. November 16th  senior year

**Manda's Note: **Oh my goodness I've missed my Gabe

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All bundled up in yellow feet pajamas with barking puppies all over them with his cozy wool Sherpa-lined pea coat buttoned to his neck and his ducky blanket that was now too small to fit his toddler self clutched in his sleeping arms she felt half guilty taking him out of the nice warm car and into the cool November air. This was a visit that she couldn't stop even if it was a bit chilly. Maybe if she'd felt better about the whole Puck thing she would have called him and asked him to watch Gabe for her so she could make the run. But she wasn't supposed to be relying on him. Santana had told herself over and over that she didn't need to, even if there was that part of her that knew that she did. She sighed to herself and shook her head from her thoughts before leaning into the car and unbuckling the toddler out of his car seat before picking his sleeping body up and cradling him to her chest. He wasn't the infant she'd brought with her the year past. He wasn't the baby who'd been wide awake and waiting to be feed, occasionally sucking at his pacifier but never crying. Instead he was now her little stud who was sound asleep at bed time, slept through the night, had a face that lit up when she walked through the door. One year changed so much. Sure, she'd learned that years ago but this past year, she'd seemed to have learned it all over again.

The wind around her rattled the trees making her clutch her toddler to her chest a little bit tighter, pressing her full lips to the top of his head for a moment. If anyone saw her right now, bring a child to a cemetery at midnight they might have called the cops. Not just because it seemed like a pretty shady thing to do but because she was Santana Lopez, apparently no one thought she was capable of having a heart. This was something she was alright with. At least it meant that Gabriel wouldn't ever be in harm's way by the vicious comments that haunted the halls of McKinley. To her, that was the most important thing. For him to always be protected. She'd sacrifice anything for her little man. She'd made that decision the day that they decided to continue on and have him. A decision that neither one of them would ever regret she was sure.

"Time to go see Gramma stud"

She whispered to her sleeping son as if he'd actually hear a word she said. Talking to him in his sleep was something she did often. It was when she could make promises to him without his angelic and all to innocent face making her feel guilty and regret her words. Words like her promise to him that they could do it just the two of them without Puck, that had been one of the most difficult promises she'd gotten out of her mouth. Carefully she carried him through the grassy area and over to where the all too familiar headstone was. There wasn't a year she missed coming here on November sixteenth and this year wasn't any different. She came at nighttime so that she wasn't spotted, so that she could cry without an audience or people's comments. Making herself comfortable she sat own cross legged in the cool grass, adjusting Gabe so that his body rested in her lap, his head on her knee. For a moment she only looked down at his face, gathering her thoughts and the things she wanted to say. She always had a sort of hard time with this.

"Hey mom, I brought you a visitor."

How badly she wished that she could have been walking into her mother's house instead couldn't have been expressed with words. The thought of her mother actually knowing her son and vice versa would never be more than just a thought. She'd never hear him be excited to go to Gramma's house or hear her mom point her in the right direction when she was panicking. There were so many things that would always be missing from her life due to the fact that she'd never be able to share him or any other moments of her life with her own mother.

"I bet you're not too happy with me. I really screwed up this time didn't I? The truth is mom, I don't know what I'm doing. I wish you were here. I needed you to be here. To point out to me when I was overreacting, when I'm panicking, when I'm giving him less credit than he deserves. I pushed him away from me because I was scared. We were seventeen and living like we were married. Seventeen year olds aren't supposed to do that. I hid in my mistakes and my defenses, I did things I shouldn't have done and pushed him to doing things he shouldn't have done. It's all just a mess and the worst part is I got my son caught right in the middle of it. Everything that I swore I wouldn't do I did. See, this is the reason I'd rather hide him, because it's all turned into just another friggen statistic like I said we weren't going to. I always manage to screw everything up don't I? Even having you mom, I screwed that up too. I shouldn't have been dragging you across the street. If I'd just waited maybe you'd still be here. Maybe I'd have you here to tell me when I'm wrong. This is my fault, it's my fault that you're gone."

The tears were starting to fall now, the composure that she'd once done so well with was a thing of the past. The guilt that she'd always felt and never admitted was pushing front and center this year, all of the 'what if's' that swirled around in her mind. She'd always felt like the 'accident' had been her fault. Always felt that if she'd just done a little bit more than maybe she wouldn't have had to say goodbye to the woman who should have been around to see her though everything. Had that been the case things would have been much different than they were.

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry for all of this mom. I just…"

Her words were cut off then by someone enveloping her from behind into a tight squeeze. She could feel his warm breath on her neck as the tears slipped down off of her cheek and hit the side of his face. She should have known he'd show up there. That he'd know where she'd be and he'd come to find her to pick up the pieces. Puck never failed when it came to knowing her better than she knew herself most times. His arms are still tightly wrapped around her, her back leaning against his chest, his head still tucked into her neck. It's the embrace that she's missed so much. The warmth that she hasn't had for far too long. They sit there in silence for a while. The silence of her quiet tears slipping down her cheeks.

"She's proud of you baby"

The comment makes her eyes water as she attempts to shake her head. She can't agree with him, not with a statement like that. She's not amounting to anything more than just a fucking screw up so far. She wishes she was more but she isn't, she's already messed up majority of her plans. She goes to argue, to open her mouth and protest but he squeezes her a little bit before she can get a word out. Puck's lips press to the side of her cheek for a moment as he loosens his grip around her and frees a hand. His fingers brush over their son's cheek for a moment, his sound asleep face never changes and just keeps on his steady and sleepy breathing.

"How could she not be proud of you? I know things aren't the greatest right now but San, you're a wonderful mother, and you're so much more than just that. You're independent, you're talented, you're beautiful. She'd be proud of you for everything. Just like …just like I am Tink, just like I'll always be."

It all reminded her further of the things she missed, all of these compliments that he'd never much said to her out loud, compliments she hadn't thought had even crossed his mind in the past few months. There'd been so much fighting and so much arguing between the two of them. Everything had been so wrong. Yet, here he was trying to sooth her. Doing what he'd always done best and trying to make her feel better. Rather than arguing or giving him a hard time she stayed there quiet, leaning back into him and looking at Gabriel's features in the dark and sullen moonlight. A light breeze blew through the cemetery and made her shiver into Puck's grip, he ran his hands over her goose bumped shoulders before whispering quietly into her ear.

"I'm gonna go start the car, take you back to the house tonight. You're not going back to the apartment along San. Want me to take him and give you a moment?"

Santana tightened her grip on their son and shook her head. She wasn't going to protest going home with him. Lying in the familiar bed and lying close to him sounded too good to turn down. Instead she shivered again when he pulled away from her and slipped her car keys out of her hand. Feeling the soft kiss to the top of her head she was tempted to almost crack a smile. Instead of letting him have that she pulled Gabe up till his head was on her shoulder as she glanced to the side and watched Puck's retreating figure walk off into the distance.

"Alright mom, I gotta get him home before he turns into an icicle and his father kills me."

She kissed the side of Gabe's head as she stood up off of the cold ground, looking at the headstone in front of her again. What she hadn't noticed was their pair of eyes watching her with the baby boy in her arms from the distance. The eyes that didn't belong to the guy who'd was going to spend the night holding her while her emotions purged themselves in her dreams. 

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**Marissa**: I love Pucktana too! I'll keep Gabe coming! I promise. Gotta keep Pucktana alive somehow!

**Syd**: I'm sorry it took so long! but I'm glad it was liked

**Mackenzie**: Sorry it took so long! Hopefully it'll continue to live up to standards now.

**Hilary**: Just have to tell you first off that the moment I opened my email and saw that the review was from you I legit screamed an spilled my juice all over myself. I'm a klutz, it happens all the time lol. and please! next time I slack so bad please leave update NOW notes. It might actually get done that way. I promise I'll be going back and doing the rest of them so that everything that happened is shown. I just wanted to make sure that I caught up with what was going on now. I don't think I could leave the others out though. Blame it on the Alcohol is one that's been on my mind since it aired! I'm so ashamed for slacking like I did. I hope that I don't slack and disappoint in any of it. I can't say that I watched all of season two or that I've watched any of season three but I'm trying to keep to the episodes.


	14. Furt

**Manda's Note: **Okay so it's been a lot longer than I expected but I had to decipher my own feelings regarding the mess that Ryan Murphy has made out of something that I used to enjoy oh so much. I still think he's a failure and he's wasted so much potential that he had in his characters by taking the 'fan's rout' out of things. But who am I to complain? Some people like it I suppose. Doesn't change the fact that I do plan on seeing things my way and passing my thoughts to you guys through my way. So I'm pretty sure my treat to myself this V-Day will be to write Pucktana since they are my happy place and all. I hope you all have a wonderful day. This chapter is simply a flashback to better times. I DO have the next chapter started. Here's a hint, think West Side Story…. enjoy my loves!

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"Quit being a baby and let your mom sleep"

With the baby in her arms Santana walked out of their bedroom in the just the white button up he'd discarded soon as they'd gotten home from the wedding. Her appearance made him bite his lip as he made a slow one over of her. The red and white bra that'd given her trouble under the dress she'd had on clearly standing out against his white shirt. She'd looked so much more than just drop dead sexy in the red dress Kurt had made her wear. It wasn't even what she'd worn that had enticed him. It was the smile that hadn't left her face, the worry that was in her voice at being away from her son for so long, and the way she perfectly fit in her arms for every song they'd danced to. She was just a part of his equation. They'd spent a rare night acting like a couple in front of their friends, something that was hardly allowed to happen. She'd had her guard down, just a smile and the occasional worry included in her plans here and there.

His eyes dropped down from her to the baby boy that was comfortably tucked into her arms. His white pajamas with the yellow, orange, and green dinosaurs with matching bib, the ones that she'd picked out of course. He took a few steps closer to them, his whining on mute for a moment as he looked down at his son. Light hazel eyes stared back at him without question, almost pleading for his arms back from where they were swaddled in the stripped matching blanket, Gabe's face so begging and so sad that Puck couldn't help but shake his head and laugh slightly as he leaned in to kiss the top of Santana's head.

"Messy eater tonight Bud? You're just glad to have mommy home rather than some dumb plastic bottle"

He felt the swat to his arm from Santana as he carefully wiped the leftover milk that was beginning to dry at the corners of Gabriel's mouth with the bib around his neck. Leaning down further he kissed Gabe's nose before looking at Santana again and pouting. She knew exactly what he was getting at and it made her roll her eyes. He was such a baby sometimes. Eventually there would be a day when she'd have to take a moment to decide who the bigger kid was, Puck or their son.

"Fine, but only this once. Next time I let you wake her up. Do not get used to this Puckerman. I am not doing this for you for the rest of your life."

Slipping the infant into his arms she put her head up and turned away from him in something that reminded him of her in school Cheerio behavior. It wasn't like he could resist himself from his next move. Leaning Gabe in one arm he reached out and copped a feel just as she started to take a step. She didn't have to be facing him for him to know that she probably had that undeniable smirk on her face. The one that pretty much said that she knew she was hot and he damn well better know it too. Had there not been a baby in his arms it probably would have led them from one thing to another. But their son was there and wide awake, it wasn't as if other things could ensue.

Grabbing the back of the infant swing he dragged it carefully across the hard wood floor into the kitchen. Close enough to the sink so that they'd be in eyesight range but far enough away so that if their occasional war broke out Gabriel wouldn't be in the war path. As Santana turned the water on Puck took a step forward holding the infant up to her for just a moment.

"Kisses mama"

The words were still strange even though it'd been months now since they'd first been said to them. She still felt the strange and slightly nervous butterflies act up. Yet she didn't hesitate to lean in to kiss their infants head. Gabe's content smile was all she needed to completely make her cheerio mode disappear as a smile spread across her face and she watched Puck walk back over to put him down in the infant swing, strapping him in carefully and twisting the music on. After standing stuck for a moment watching the father and son pairing she smiled to herself and turned around quickly. Turning the warm water on to the temperature she normally used for Gabe's bath time she lined the front of the sink with a towel and waited, jumping a little bit as arms wrapped around her waist and lips pressed into the side of her head.

"You know, you really did look beautiful today."

His kisses were getting lower now, down her neck causing her to ease into him and close her eyes as his hands slipped around her hips and slowly trailed up her waist till he'd pulled her back into him, making a very tight squeeze for her to turn around, pinning herself between the sink and his chest as she met his kisses with the same need, want, and passion he was putting into them. She could remember the days they'd been caught by his mother in the kitchen in almost complex and complicated situations, all the times she'd needed to excuse herself to his room after meals just because he'd decided her skirt was short enough for him to play with. She'd gotten lost in their kisses, in his touches, her arms had wrapped around his neck and there was almost no space between them. Something so simple had turned into something more in just a split second. Then right as his hands had gone to play with the few buttons that were clasped on her shirt the whining started and they both pulled back from where 'washing his hair' had been headed.

"So your hair…" 

* * *

**Nikki** – Thank you so much! you have no idea what that means to me.

**Hilary** – Please please pleaseee tell me you're still reading this. I'm so sorry it's been so long I just had a really bad time with trying to stay focused through the mess of things. But I'm back on key point now! I promise! As for Blame It, I'm looking really forward to doing. I need to just point out a few things as to the fact that in the song G6, like they play in the episode the lyrics are 'Sober girls be acting like they drunk' just a hint. I really hope you're still reading and I'm looking so forward to hearing from you you have no idea. so I shall keep my fingers crossed.


	15. Thanksgiving

**Manda's Note**: So I don't know if anyone even remembers this ;) I'm so sorry that I don't update anymore. I don't know what's taken so long. I've taken most of myself over to Tumblr but hmm, maybe I'll start at some of these again.

* * *

"Alright buddy …ready to go see mommy?"

The two and a half year old's eyes popped open finally at the words that had just come from his father's mouth, there was an excitement in the little hazel orbs that was unmatched by anything else. It had been two weeks since Gabe had been in her custody, since the little boy had seen his mother or clung to any of her kisses. Instead he'd hobbled around a half furnished apartment calling her name out every chance he got, cried himself to sleep on his father's shoulder with his thumb in his mouth, and pointed to the phone begging for his daddy to call her whenever he saw the thing laying around no matter what time of the day it was. That was something he did to Puck every time it was his turn to spend two weeks with his son. Every time it never failed to make the guy with the now shaven mohawk feel guiltier than sin separating the two from one another. Between the way Gabriel looked for her without ale and how he heard her voice hit the lowest of lows like it'd always done before she started to cry. Every time she said her goodbyes to their son over the phone for the night.

He hated this arraignment and he'd offered to just up and move to Louisville to be closer to them a number of times. So that they could be a family or at least not have to spend so much money on plane tickets every two weeks to shuffle their little boy back and forth from crappy apartment to crappy apartment. And yet she'd been stubborn. Telling him that they weren't together for a reason, that he was out in California to make something of himself and he better as hell have been doing that. Because she wasn't going to be accused of dictating his life and being the reason he settled for less than what he wanted and …well he'd stopped listening sometime after that. Waiting till she'd just shut up for five seconds so that he could kiss her. His half drunken state after graduation taking over and knowing hers had as well. That had been the first time in weeks that she'd let him touch her like that. He just wished that something in her head would have clicked and that she'd of asked him not to leave her to go off to school.

"Momma?"

Awake and alive now Gabe anxiously kicked his feet against the seat in front of him causing the old man there to turn around and send a minimal glare at the young father, something that Puck simply brushed off. Some people were so touchy. They were too old to so much as be around children anymore. Pulling Gabriel off of the seat he held him in his lap for a moment as the 'fasten your seat belts' sign above their heads was finally removed and all of the other passengers on the flight began to get up and shuffle around for their bags and things.

The impatient child didn't like the wait, as his constant calls for his mother became louder and louder as Puck pulled their carryon down and headed for the exit to the terminal. She was already there waiting, he knew that. She always was, waiting with impatient until the moment her son was back in her arms looking like a little monster compared to her tiny frame. They were images that he saved in his mind every time he saw it, images that he missed especially on those nights when Gabe just had to cry himself to sleep because he was stuck with his daddy for two weeks and not his mother. At least this time they would have gotten some time together, three whole days that they'd both decided they needed to spend with one another …simply for their son she'd claimed.

As the end of the terminal came into view he spotted her there, short blue skirt tight fitting like a glove, cleavage exposing white top with a matching leather jacket over it, the same image of her that he'd grown to love so much over the years. Then there was the one thing he loved more than that, the fact that her hair was down and she hadn't bothered with her contacts. Instead her glasses sat right on her nose and he arms clenched in impatiens. The way she always got when they took too long for her. And any second over the exact time that was on the return flight ticket was more time than she wanted to be waiting.

"Mama mama mama mama"

Gabriel's desperate calls were smothered in the sounds of people rushing here and there around home, downing out his voice in the sea of many. Of course, many that weren't the trained ears of his mother. Like an arrow had hit her directly Santana turned her head, her eyes focusing on the toddler boy in his arms as she ran closer to them, her heels making a sound on the shiny tiled floor with every step her boots took.

"Hi Stud"

He didn't even get a hello, yet he hadn't expected to anyways. Instead he placed the baby directly into her arms as she pulled at him anyway. Stepping back he kept his eyes locked on the mother and son pairing standing there, her arms wrapped tightly around his little delicate body as his own cubby little arms held as tight as he could to her neck, placing sloppy and slobbery kisses with loud smacks every time his mouth hit her cheek. There wasn't a solitary question whose son he was alright.

"I don't like it when you're at daddy's"

With a pointed look to him he rolled his eyes at her, it was a comment she said every time and every time he had the same reaction to it. If she didn't like it so much than she should have asked him to stay, he would have done it in a heartbeat. He'd told her that a million times and he would have told her a million more if he had to, maybe one time she'd actually learn how to listen to him. Not that that was something he'd hold his breath on. He probably would have been buried six feet under well before anything clicked in her own head. She was sometimes just too stubborn for her own good, too stubborn for the good of them.

Standing back from them a couple of inches he watched them, just as he always had. The way Gabe's eyes shown being in his mother's eyes, the way Santana looked at him so unguarded and so happy. Like this was the position she was always meant to be in. It was the position she was meant to be in and he would have told anyone that if he'd been questioned on it. Which of course he wouldn't be, because of course they just had to be the masters of hiding things and falling behind façades so that the rest of the world wasn't ever let in and that the rest of the world didn't know their secrets, for protection. Not that it was always such a bad thing; It was nice having some air of mystery to him, made him feel a little like a superhero.

"So I guess this means I should go out there and find a cab to take me home now…"

Pointing in the direction of the exit of the airport he started to take a step back knowing that she was going to object, he just didn't feel like standing around in a crowded airport any longer when their son was probably hungry and he could have easily taken the excuse for the long car ride with his two favorite people. And just like he'd expected she rolled her eyes at him. What he hadn't expected though was her to so toughly grab the front of his shirt pulling him into her and meshing her lips to his as if their lives both depended upon it. It was a kiss he didn't want to end, one that he would have gladly let everything around them fade into the distance for. So she really had missed her son, or judging from her kiss she was missing something a lot more than that. Something that he had no objection to giving to her if she asked nicely. Screw it, she didn't have to ask nicely, he needed it too.

Their kiss was only stopped by the little patting against his cheek by the impatiently toddler that was now squished between the both of his parents in tight lock. His incessant little beating to Puck's cheek finally broke the kiss apart as she pulled back from him sucking in her bottom lip as he ran his tongue along the inside of his cheek. Saving both the taste and the piece of gum that was now lost to his mouth, an average move for the both of them, something that pulled him into memories of when they were younger, more spontaneous and with a lot less to worry about.

"So judging from that kiss …I'm gonna guess that you haven't…"

As the assumption fell from his lips it made him smirk. Both at the prospect of what the night would bring as well as the fact that he'd been the last one to touch her months ago. It meant that she'd be so much more impatient and so much more fun to silently torture in the hours well after their son had gone to sleep and his sister had grown tired of the both of them being back. Because he knew her to well, because that was what this meant and that was what she wanted from him. Wasn't exactly what he'd anticipated from their trip home but he wasn't going to just complain about it either. Any bit of her that he got to keep without her complaining about something or other for a little while was what he'd take.

"Shut up Puckerman"

Watching her roll her eyes as she pushed his shoulder he led them out of the airport waiting area and into baggage claim to get his things. This was the stuff he missed most, the things that he missed no longer being around her every day. Even her bitching and complaining wasn't the same over the phone. Not to mention that the smile that hadn't left Gabe's face yet as he babbled away consuming her every second. Normally this was only something he got to watch for an hour or two until one of their flights came and the other had to leave with a very curt goodbye and one with a crying child reaching out for the other. It was sad when that was the normal life they'd settled into now. So far from what he'd expected them to have the beginning of junior year.

"Time to go drop him off with Nana and head to the school, knowing Finn and Q we'll be dragged out to dinner too."  
A sigh came through her lips as he pulled the luggage off the turn wheel. What he didn't expect when he stood back up was for her to lay her head against his side. Putting his free arm around her he leaned down and kissed the top of Gabe's head. Of course, in a fashion just like his mother would have done at his age he swiped at the top of his head as if to brush the kiss off in a very stubborn manor. There was no doubt whose child he was with many of his actions. 

* * *

Curling up at his side she ran her hand down his bare chest, the warmth there making her absentmindedly curl in closer as they both waited for their breathing to turn regular again. She liked this whole being home in Lima with him for a couple of days thing. She liked having both him and Gabe right there without having to pick up a phone and share like they normally did. Not that that was something she'd tell him. That was facts she'd keep for herself while she pretended like it wasn't a big deal and she didn't miss him. Like it didn't kill her only seeing him every two weeks to drop their son off here or there. That was one of the parts she hated the most. Sad as it was to say she could have taken the distance between the two of them because in a perfect time they would have had webcams to keep them both perfectly occupied. But, the things they had right now was a son who cried nights for his daddy when he was with her and then cuddled up tight to him on the two weeks he wasn't with her. It was the things like that that caused her to cry herself to sleep at night inside of the tiny apartment that was sometimes occupied by her and her son and sometimes just her alone.

Then to put on top of it being home in Lima and hearing everyone's shit here and there about what they'd been doing and where their lives were now. That didn't even count the whole high school drama that she now looked at from the outside thankful to not be involved anymore. Because people were shitty and they were useless it was something that she'd come to expect over the years. There was a part of her, after being in town for two days already, that was already more than anxious at the idea of going home to Louisville. The only downside about that would have been leaving him behind. She hadn't notices the sigh that had fallen from her lips till he spoke up about it. She probably would have been more careful rather than to make it seem like she was actually sad or thinking about anything.

"Not the type of sigh I want to hear from the girl who just had sex for the first time in months."

His voice was still low and husky, almost as if he was already up for yet another go. One that she was still trying to catch her breath from, it wasn't as if she couldn't have gone again, it was simply that her mind was filled from the events of the day. Meeting the new Glee kids had been strange in its self. It wasn't like she hadn't seen them before she just hadn't seen them fully in action before. She couldn't help but wonder if she'd been anything like any of them once upon a time. She was sure she had, it was hard to believe that only a couple of months ago she'd owned those halls, that she'd ran almost everything and everyone in them.

"That Kitty chick is like Fabray 2.0"

Without even looking up at him she could tell the smirk that had taken over his features and she pretty much knew the comment that would come out of his mouth next. Yet for some stupid reason she kept her mouth shut, figuring she'd let him get it out of his system before he made any other smart assed remarks. By now she knew him better than she knew herself and she knew what to expect out of his mouth when she made comments as such. He was still a typical teenage boy after all.

"You're telling me that the whole time we've been together tonight you've been thinking of some high school cheerleader? San… something you wanna tell me?"

Slapping his chest the click of her palm hitting him traveled around the empty room. She just hoped it didn't go any further out of the bedroom. Waking Gabe up from where he finally slept peacefully in his Nana's bed and right in the middle of them would have put a quick end to their little play date for the night. As much as she loved having their son between them, taking the moments to lay in bed with the both of her boys and to pretend that everything was something more than what it was, she wanted the night to herself for a little while. She wanted Puck to herself for a little while longer.

"No you asshole. But seriously, Marley? I think that's her name? I wasn't really paying attention… pretty sure mini Fabray's getting mini Berry to puke. I mean if I hadn't…"

Feeling his lips on her temple she knew she didn't have to go any further, that he knew where she was heading and what she was going to say. That was one of the things she missed the most about them. Not having to complete her sentences and him getting it without questioning her. Because that was how they belonged and how they'd always been. But wasn't their futures and securing their son's future a little bit more important than their own happiness?

"If you'd never purged though, you don't know if we'd have Gabriel right now. I know, there's been a long list of complications that have come from it too. And I'm not saying this Kat Marty thing is a good thing …I'm just saying don't over analyze it. You don't have to play the sarcastic superhero. Besides, you need to take care of yourself."

There was a double meaning in his words that made her pause for a second, she wasn't hiding things to well and just by the way he spoke she could tell he knew the things she didn't want him to. Rolling over she wrapped her leg around him, pulling him closer to her body as she hid her face in his chest. Of course she knew that cuddling up closer to him wasn't going to do her any good. Whenever he felt like lecturing her it would begin. Maybe it was exactly what she needed, a reminder from him that he still gave a damn about the less than ideal things she decided to do. So long as he didn't tell his mother it wouldn't be too bad of a problem. But, there was nothing to say that he wouldn't do just exactly that. They'd always been pretty good at lecturing her together and making her actually think about the mistakes she made.

"How long have you been doing it again?"

There had to be credit given for how nonchalant his voice came off. A façade that would be full of anger and worry underneath if he hadn't been so afraid of her deciding to run. Knowing her, she would have done exactly that if he'd raised his voice and showed his true emotions regarding it to her. Raising her head just enough she caught him in a kiss, hoping to pull him off of the new rant that he was destine to go off on if the subject lingered to long. As he kissed her back she figured she was in the clear and that he'd forget all about what she'd said before. At least until he changed their positions, this time pinning her on her back.

"Spill it Santana."

His tone told her that he wasn't playing around as he loomed over her, his lips just inches from hers as he leaned his weight on his arms. Sometimes she was full of regret over the fact that she couldn't just tell him the things that she wanted to. That she couldn't give him that commitment that he nearly begged for. Because if she had been able to then their lives would have been completely different and they wouldn't have had to ship their son off on a plane every two weeks, they could have both enjoyed him together. They could have both enjoyed one another …who was she kidding.


End file.
